'Haneul? Your friend's here to see you'

You looked up from your bed where you had been lying and thinking about what to do with yourself to see Huiling by the door, a nervous smile plastered on her face. It wasn't until you looked back down to see that you had been writing in her notebook did you realise why she looked so frightened.

'Oh... God, I'm sorry. I didn't think. I didn't realise this was yours. Oh, I should have checked. Huiling, I'm sorry. I'll get you a new one.'

'Aniyo, it's fine. Keep it. I'll be going back home soon anyway so I can buy one there' Huiling replied quietly, quickly leaving the room before you could catch what she had said.

What did she say?

Outside, Jenny was waiting. She had a look that read 'sorry' as well as 'we gotta talk' and 'you aint gonna like this' on her face. After heading out to a cafe outside the campus facility, you finally asked why she had called you out.

'I came back to my place this morning to find Taejoon there. He was crying, Haneul.'

'Crying?'

'He came to your dorm this morning, right?'

You nodded.

'And made a fool of himself?'

You nodded again, hesitating a bit this time

'Haneul, how long are you going to keep this up? I can't keep coming home to find a drunk and distraught boy on my bedroom floor. Minwoo is getting tired of it. Jinri can't handle it anymore. I know you don't mean to be selfish but you need to tell him the truth. You need to tell him it's over. Get him to move on.'

'How do I do that without breaking him?'

'I'm going to be blunt here Haneul but you can't. He's already cracking. At least tell him before he cracks fully and breaks apart again.'

'You make it sound easy' you said, glaring at Jenny, 'talking to him is getting harder and harder'

'He's not himself, Haneul. You of all people know that. Tell him firmly that's it's over. Tell him to look for someone else. Someone like...'

'Jinri?'

'She told you?'

'Yeah'

Jenny sighed deeply, pinching the top of her nose.

'There's no way of knowing if Taejoon will see Jinri in that way, even after you tell him it's done.'

'I know.'

'Is that why you've been putting it off? Telling him?'

'If Taejoon doesn't like her now then at least she can blame it on me. If he still doesn't like her when I tell him it's over then where will she be? At the bottom of the swimming pool? On the road side?'

'I understand what you're saying. Honestly, I do. When it comes to Jinri, she's like alcohol. Volatile. Easily flammable. One little thing and her world catches on fire. Burns to the ground. Ashes and cinders.'

'Jen, am I a bad person?'

Jenny placed her hand over yours. 'Of course not. You just need to make a decision fast before something happens. Break Ahn Taejoon as cleanly as possible.'

 

---

 

'Hyung?'

D.O was lying face down on his bed, his pillow over his head to cut out any noise. Kai prodded him, poking his back.

'Hyung?'

Wearily, D.O rolled over and groaned when he saw Kai standing over him- arms crossed and looking angry.

'You lied to me. You told me you hadn't confessed yet.'

'No. I didn't tell you anything. You asked but I never replied.'

'When did you do it? Was it before I told you?'

'The day I took her to see my mom. That's when I did it.'

'Oh God'

'What's wrong?'

'You confessed to her in Gapyeong, didn't you? , hyung, how am I supposed to beat that?'

'Kai, it's not about how or where you confess. As long as your confession is sincere, who cares where it is? It's the feelings you're expressing that matters'

'Easy for you to say. How did you do it? Was it romantic? Was it in a field with a load of flowers?'

'It was behind a waterfall if you're really that interested'

Kai threw him hands in the air and threw himself onto his bed.

'Oh holy lord'

'Kai, don't curse'

'Behind a waterfall, hyung! So you were both wet and shivering. Hyung, if I wasn't your competitor I'd be patting you on the back. I never took you to be extravagant with confessions'

'I kissed her too'

Kai choked, 'you what?'

'Kissed her. Twice.'

'D-Did she kiss you back?'

'Well she let me kiss her the second time, didn't she?'

'Does that mean she likes you too?'

'She hasn't accepted my confession yet, you'll be glad to hear. She said she still needs time'

'Times running out what with Ahn Taejoon bursting in this morning'

'I was going to step forwards but she stopped me'

'I saw'

'Why do you think she stopped me?'

'I don't know'

'Why didn't you step forwards?'

'I... I was scared'

'Of Ahn Taejoon?'

'Hyung, he was drunk. What if something happened and he suddenly turned violent? Haneul could have gotten hurt.'

'She seemed completely unfazed by it. I think he's gentle. If she can trust him then so can I. They have a longer history together than she does with any one of us.'

'That's true but-'

'Don't you trust her judgement?'

'You like her that much, hyung?'

D.O nodded, 'whatever choice she makes is the right one. If she chooses you, I won't mind. If she chooses to hang around Ahn Taejoon, I won't mind. As long as she's happy and safe, I won't mind.' 

He rolled around on his bed, eventually settling for lying flat on his face when suddenly, Tao burst into the room, throwing a shirt over his still wet body. Both Kyungsoo and Kai glanced over at him.

'Why are you wet?' Kyungsoo asked first

'Moreover, why are you here?' Kai added, 'shouldn't you at least dry off first before trying to dress?'

'Hyung's going out on a supermarket trip.'

'Hyung? Suho-hyung?'

'No, Kris-hyung'

'Kris-hyung?' Tao nodded, 'Noona's coming over tonight'

'What? Isn't she supposed to be in Jeju for a shoot?'

'It was supposed to be Chihiro's shoot but they cancelled her last minute. Apparently she's really upset so noona asked if they could come round for dinner.'

'Unbelievable' D.O said, getting up off his bed, 'should I start preparing some chicken or something now? Aish, it's already almost time for my seminar-'

'Hyung and I are going out to the supermarket to buy supplies and I think the plan is for Luhan-hyung to marinate the meat. You can rest easy today, hyung. Especially after dinner last night.'

'So who's going to cook?'

'Xiumin-hyung is. We're going to have a rooftop barbeque to try and cheer Chihiro up'

Kai frowned, 'There's a barbeque on the roof?' and Tao nodded in response. 

'Well there is now. Seohee-noona's bringing them later when she gets back from her double date.'

'Ah, a double date with Baekhyun and Maddie?'

'Yep,' said Tao ruffling his hair with a towel, 'and Sehun and Haneul are going out too'

'Excuse me?' said Kai

'Going out? They're going out?' D.O asked

Tao lowered the towel from his head, 'yeah... Oh! No! Not that kind of going out! They've going to spy on them when Haneul gets back from her lesson'

'Honestly, those two...' said D.O, 'she's such a kid'

'I'm making them film it,' Tao grinned, 'I want to see Baekhyun-hyung get pounded to the floor by Seohee-noona and Chen-hyung. They're too sharp- it's scary'

'So everyone's coming to this barbeque dinner we're hosting?' Kai asked, 'even Ahn Taejoon?'

Tao nodded, 'yeah. It's gonna be fun! Don't fret!'

 

***

 

When returning from a lesson later that afternoon, Suho and Lay both let you use the shower first. You had taken part in a lung dissection earlier and all three of you were aware that you all smelt a little bit weird. Well, little would be an understatement. You smelt like you had died a few years ago, literally. Grabbing your usual shower gel from the cabinet, you turned the shower on and let the water cleanse your body. When you began washing your hair, shampoo began to run into your eyes and you rubbed furiously, trying not to cry at the same time. Whilst half blind, you dispensed what you thought was your face wash into your hand and began massaging it onto your face, only to realise there was a musky scent to it that definitely wasn't apple fragranced. Opening your eyes slowly, you groaned when you saw what you had been using. 

It was Kris and Chanyeol's joint face wash. 

Most of the guys, if not all besides Chen and Suho, shared face wash brands amongst them. Chanyeol and Kris leant towards the manly smelling products, in particular to the Biotherm facewash Won Bin was the model for. The other numerous face washes in the bathroom were from standard brands like Nivea and Neutrogena which you had recognised from the drug stores back in the UK. The other face washes were from Korean brands like Nature Republic which Jang Geun Suk endorsed and It's Skin which 2PM's Nichkhun was the model for. There wasn't a need for them to all use different kinds and things like shower gel were also shared. After figuring out some of the guys were using your fruit scented shower gel, you had remembered to stock up the following time you went to the supermarket and now the entire dorm had converted to either berry scented shower gel (that was Sehun, Suho, D.O, Luhan, Tao) or citrus scented shower gel (Kai, Chanyeol, Xiumin, Lay, Baekhyun, Chen). The odd one out was Kris who insisted on using the same brand for all of his face and body products. Suho made sure it would come out of his own allowance if he was going to be picky and naturally, Kris didn't complain. He had said 'at least I won't smell like any of you' to which Sehun had wittily replied 'you're not good enough to smell like us.'

'Why the hell is this in here?!' you yelled, 'Aish, I'm going to smell like a man!'

There was a knock on the door and you peered around the shower curtain, sighing when you caught sight of your tub of cleanser, Skinfood's Apple Vinegar Cleansing Gel Cream by the sink.

'Yeah? Who is it?'

'Are you alright, Haneul?' 

It was Lay.

'Why are you screaming? Did you hurt yourself?'

'Aniyo! I just used Kris and Chanyeol's face wash! That's all!'

You heard a slight chuckle from behind the door and you turned off the shower.

'I'm finished now so I'll be out in 5 minutes or so!'

'Araso!'

You stepped out of the shower and looked to the small stand where your clothes usually lay only to find that you were missing one vital thing: your towel. You took a deep breath to compose yourself, trying not to panic.

'Laaaaaay! Help me!'

'Yeah?! What is it?!'

'I forgot my towel!'

You could hear him laughing and Suho chuckling as well in the background. 

'Okay, okay! I'll go get you one.'

He left to pick up a towel from the cabinet, knocking on the bathroom door before opening it a fraction. 

'Haneul-ah?'

He stuck his hand in, holding the towel which you grabbed and quickly wrapped around you. 

'Thanks!' you said, opening the door a little more so he could see you. 

Your hair was dripping down your face and Lay burst out laughing again. 

'Should I get you another towel for your hair?'

You blushed, 'yes please'

Lay bowed, left and quickly returned again with a green towel with H.Z.T stitched into the corner. There were miscelleanous bleach marks all over it and you peered at it, holding it by the corner.

'Don't look at it like it's diseased. It's just the towel Tao uses when he dyes his hair occasionally. Stop pulling that face. Stop! You look really cute like that.'

You grinned and wrapped the towel around your head like a turban.

'Really?'

'Of couse,' Lay nodded, 'for the Grudge anyway'

'Yah!'

 

***

 

As it neared around 5 o'clock that evening, you and Sehun set out to try and capture the double date in action. Armed with a camera and a walkie talkie set that Sehun had borrowed from the backstage crew, you made your way to the park near your university campus. It was starting to get late and everyone was expected to be back for the barbeque so the plan was to film some cringeworthy material, ambush the couples and then drag them back for dinner. Fool proof plan really.

You were dressed in black shorts and a plain black vest, matching Sehun who wore navy board shorts and a black wifebeater. You wore your hair down and had put on one of Chanyeol's caps to hide your face a bit better. It was hot in Seoul and wearing black perhaps wasn't the best idea. 

'Sehun to Haneul, can you hear me? Over.'

'This is Haneul. Recieving. Over.'

'Any sight of target subjects? Over.'

'Not yet. Over.'

'Let's try the bike stands. Over.'

'Call.'

Sehun didn't reply and you frowned, looking at your walkie talkie. It's definitely on...

'Sehun? Yah, Oh Sehun, are you there?'

'You didn't say over.'

You rolled your eyes and stormed over to the tree Sehun was hiding behind, pulling his arm. He shrieked and attempted to pull back only to trip up on the tree roots and tumble to the floor.

'Oh my God, Sehun! Are you okay?! Here, let me help you up!'

You stretched your hand out and Sehun took it, only to pull you down onto the ground. He began crawling away heading towards a hedge to hide behind and you crawled after him.

'Where are you going?!'

'Shhh! They're over there!'

You made to stand up but Sehun yanked you back down. 'Yah! They'll see if you stand up!'

'Are you sure it's them?'

Sehun nodded, creating a partition in the hedge to spy through. He held it open with his hand, pushing the branches and leaves aside and you held up the camera through the gap, giggling mischeviously. Maddie and Baekhyun sat facing Chen and Seohee, their backs to you. Baekhyun's arm was slowly inching up but not touching Maddie's body and Sehun clenched his fists nervously.

'Come on, hyung! Come on! Do it! Do it!'

On many an occasion in the next minute or so, Baekhyun would drop his arm to put it over Maddie's shoulder but always stopped before it came to rest. Each time would be met with a groan of exasperation from both you and Sehun.

'Be a man, Baekhyun!' you hissed, 'just do it!'

Eventually Baekhyun's arm was around Maddie's shoulder and he pulled her closer to him.

'Woo! Hyung! That's how you do it!' Sehun said, fist pumping the air. 

You stopped filming and checked the playback. The video showed Baekhyun attempting more than 50 times to put his arm around his girlfriend's shoulder and you rubbed your hands gleefully, eyes shining and bright. 

'This is going to be hilarious when we show it later'

'Totally'

Watching the Chen- Seohee couple was harder as they were facing the hedge directly. There were a few nose rubs, armpit snuggles and cheek kisses but nothing too much. Watching them made you and Sehun feel a little sick. It was all just too cute. 

'I think we should just film Baekhyun-hyung.'

'I agree. Seohee and Chen make me want to hurl.'

'At least we can make fun of hyung's attempts later on.'

'Such an awkward couple'

You decided to move location to somewhere you'd be able to see Baekhyun and Maddie's faces. You found an old oak tree and Sehun helped you climb up it, holding your hand to ensure you wouldn't fall and scrape yourself. He climbed higher than you, settling and perching in a branch just above yours. 

'Sehun to Haneul. Over.'

'Idiot. I'm right here.'

Sehun glared at you pointedly and you sighed, holding the walkie talkie to your mouth and pressing the big red button.

'Yes, this is Haneul. Recieving. Over.'

'Target locked down. Commence filming. Over.'

'Erm... Slight problem here. Over.'

'What problem? Over.'

'No battery left. Over.'

'What?!'

Holding onto the branch, Sehun swung his head down grabbing the camera. He tried to turn it on and flipped it over, checking the battery pack. It was exhausted and he whined like a baby.

'Andwae!'

You sighed, slumping down in a hollow of the trunk and looked around. The view from where you were hiding was incredible- you could see the entire park and everyone in it. Coming from the far entrance however, you spotted two tall figures that looked incredibly familiar. 

'Sehun?'

He looked up from studying the camera, 'mm? What is it?'

'Is that... Chihiro?'

Sehun's eyes widened and he clambered down to the level you were at. Chihiro was now fast approaching having spotted you waving at her and Chanyeol followed suit, quite a few metres behind her. He kept getting distracted by people biking around him and running after each other. All too soon, you realised Sehun was now a little too close and you coughed to make it obvious.

'I'm getting claustrophobic here, Sehun. Can you budge and give me some space?'

Sehun shook his head, throwing weary looks at Chihiro who was absentmindedly coming closer. She wasn't in any particular rush and you assumed she was just enjoying the scenery of the park, what with her fiasco of being cancelled on the job. 

'Haneul,' Sehun took hold of your forearm and held it, his face stern, 'I have something to tell you. I need you to help me.'

'Sure... Just... Can you not be so close? It's really freaking me out.'

He didn't budge. 'See... I... Erm, I like this girl and I don't know if she likes me back.'

'Right...'

'So. So. So... Could you tell me if she does?'

'How would I know, Sehun? Chihiro doesn't speak.'

'Exactly!' Sehun hissed, 'how can I like someone who doesn't talk?!'

'Well that's not really the same thing. You can like anyone you want to. Look. Chihiro's feeling down today so why don't you tell her your feelings?'

You glanced over at the mute girl who was now almost reaching the tree you were sat in. Sehun began sweating and he held both of your shoulders causing both you and Chihiro to frown from the sudden movement.

'Sehun?... What are you doing? You're going to give her the wrong impression...'

'I like you, Haneul! I like you!' Sehun shouted, loud enough for Chihiro to hear and stop dead in her tracks. You slowly turned your head to look at her with a horrified expression and you hit Sehun's chest causing him to fall back.

'Yah! Don't throw words like that around!'

'It's true, Haneul! I like you! I always have done! I've always liked you!'

You flicked Sehun's forehead with enough force to have him clutching at his red skin, whimpering in pain. 

'What was that for?!'

'Why the hell are you confessing to me when you and I both know you like her!' you shouted at him, pointing to Chihiro who was now a figure, back turned and running away. 'What on earth were you thinking?! You need to realise that doing this doesn't help anyone!'

Sehun was watching Chihiro run off, her hair billowing in the wind behind her. She passed Chanyeol on the way back who caught hold of her and you noticed him bend down to her eye level and hug her. He then looked up and pointed in your direction and you shoved Sehun.

'Think about who you really like and why you're doing this, okay?' you said softly

Sehun looked at the ground guiltily. He didn't have the heart to say anything.

'Go get her, you pansy,' you laughed, 'or else you might lose her forever after what you just did.'

Sehun jumped down to the ground and began running towards her. Chanyeol had since let go of Chihiro, allowing her to run off but Sehun soon caught up. You caught a glimpse of him snatching her hand whilst puffing and panting and that was when you looked away only to find Chanyeol at the base of the tree, arms outstretched.

'Need a hand?'

'Yes please...'

 

 

---

Buing buing!~~

WASSUP E'RYBODY HOPE THE WEATHER WHERE YOU LIVE IS BETTER THAN THE WEATHER IN LONDON (it's almost July and it's raining like wat...) lol... so... over a week without an update...sorry guys... BUT HEY! I'M BACK! Latest news in my fangirl life is: KYUNGSOO KYUNGSOO KYUNGSOO CHANYEOL KYUNGSOO KYUNGSOO's ENGLISH VOICE ENGLISH BRITISH ACCENT MMHMM COME HERE MARRY ME KYUNGSOO KYUNGSOO CHANYEOL KYUNGSOO WAH

To commemorate the revival of my first EXO love, during the past week I've come to drawing Kyungsoo! If you wanna see, it's here ^^

I enjoyed writing the little bit about the face washes in this lol as some of you might be able to tell... Beauty products/ skincare is sort of my secret obsession. I freaking love everything about that sort of stuff. Like researching a face product is a hobby of mine. I'm not kidding. Also, a lot happened in this chapter so I expect ya'll to be commenting away like CRAY-ZAY! 

p.s THANK YOU TO SOPHIADIEMMI FOR CREATING SUCH A PRETTY POSTER FOR ME. Legit, everyone on twitter thought it was amazing too!!!