Plan A, B, C, D……

“I think you guys know why we’re all here right?” T.O.P. asked them.

The six others nodded in unison and he continued “Manager’s rules are very strict and what we have in our hands… it’s not a very easy matter to discuss. Two people we really care about are involved and we need to find a solution that will ensure two things – One, we all end up happy and Two, we try not to hurt anyone at all in the process.”

“Wow” Seung-ri commented, unable to help himself “It is really rare to see hyung this serious.”

CL looked up the ceiling in obvious irritation and rolled her eyes “That is not related to the subject at all.”

“I know that” Seung-ri replied.

“Ashishishishishishi….” Daesung raised his hands between the two like a referee and blew an imaginary whistle “Back to your corners!!!”

Bom and Minji laughed at this.

“Hey! You two stop that. We’re here to discuss other things and not hear the two of you bicker” YB told them off “Why don’t we get back to T.O.P.-hyung?”

“We haven’t seen any displays of affection from the two that could confirm our suspicions right?” T.O.P. resumed.

This time, the six others shook their head.

“Their interactions are just actually much like our interactions, nothing special going on really” Bom answered.

“I think we have to make them really acknowledge those feelings first” Daesung jumped in.

“Isn’t that going to be harder?” Minji piped up “I mean… what do we want for them anyway? Do we want them to end up together? Do we want to separate them?”

“I think – and correct me if I am wrong… we should see first how deeply they really feel for one another” T.O.P. responded “As I said, our goal is to make sure that everyone is happy and no one gets hurt.”

“If Ji really feels that strongly for Dara, I’m not sure I have it in me to take her away from him. And if Dara feels the same way too, I’m sure none of you girls have it in you too to take Ji away from her” YB added “I’ve known Ji the longest among all of us and if Dara is making him happy…”

“We understand what you mean Oppa” CL told him “We… We love one another like true sisters and we would only want happiness for one another.”

“But we’re not yet “that” sure of their feelings” Seung-ri countered “We have to see proof and I think we need to put their feelings to a test.”

“Well, how do we do that?” Daesung asked him.

Seung-ri smiled his 10,000 mega-watt smile “I’ve thought up of some things actually.”

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*The Second Hello*

They were rehearsing the song and Ji knew that she was really nervous. “She might not have eaten too”, he thought, looking at how sallow her face was.

“You don’t need to go really high on this Dara” their voice coach, seated facing the mixing machine, advised “I think Ji knows what he wants and he just wants to hear that freshness from you.”

Dara nodded, head bent on the lyric paper.

“Hell!” Ji thought, “She’s nervous, she’s uptight, and she hadn’t looked at me since we both arrived here.” He wasn’t sure even if he had heard her speak to him at all.

It had been three days since Jin-ah’s arrival. Three days since that “WE DATED” announcement in the training room.

And FOUR days since that intimate embrace at the rooftop.

He scratched at his head. “What the F?!?”, he thought, “Jin-ah just backtracked my progress for a thousand light years.”

“Ji Yong, you don’t like how Dara sang it?” the coach asked.

“Ow. Had she sung it already?” Ji asked stupidly.

“She did.”

“Ow! Sorry. Sorry” he answered “I was thinking. I’m sorry I was distracted.”

That answer earned him a confused look from the voice coach and a fidget from Dara – she still wouldn’t look at him, though. But he knew both were really displeased.

“Maybe we should start from the top” he suggested.

“Jeeeez”, he mentally kicked himself, “She’ll now think that I’m thinking of Jin-ah! Damn! She’s already in front of you Ji so stop thinking about her!”

“OK” the voice coach replied “Let’s begin… One two three…”

The drum beat began… “Let’s go!” Ji started and tried his very best to focus on the music.

He’ll talk to her later. He’ll make damn sure she wasn’t going to escape that conversation.

-----------------------------------------------------------

*A woman to another*

Rehearsing with Ji was pure torture. She had to put on the most placid face she had in the world just to make sure that he didn’t read anything about the confusion she was going through.

And it had almost shattered her when she had sung and found out that he wasn’t even listening.

“Is this what that Jin-ah had done to him?” she asked herself, facing the mirror at their apartment’s bathroom. CL, Bom, and Minji had gone out somewhere and she was sure that they might not return anytime soon.

Sighing, she turned her back from the mirror and went out the bathroom.

She wasn’t sure if she was alone at the apartment complex. What she did know, though, was that Ji had stayed in training for the solo performances he was perfecting, the girls were gone, and she had not seen any traces of any of the other Big Bang-sunbaes.

“This is going to drive me crazy” she said out loud and reached for her phone. She wanted to talk to someone about how she felt but there was really no one to talk to. She looked at the list of names on her phonebook and felt her spirit crush down.

She didn’t have anyone at all that she could just call up or text. Han and Se7en had already left for California and she wasn’t sure what time it would be there now.

She was sure that she could have opened this up to Han, in spite of a threat that Han would go berserk again, and Han would dig through this with her. She really missed being able to do that. She loved the girls but she couldn’t open her heart to them about this – the most important thing in her life.

The doorbell rang, making her jump up from her reverie.
She walked to the foyer to open the door and almost stumbled when she saw Jin-ah standing outside their apartment.

“Jin-ah-shi” she uttered.

“Hi Unnie” the other girl replied “I – I wanted to talk to you.”

“Ow! Uhhmmmm… Anyeong” she greeted, remembering her manners “Would you like to come in?”

Jin-ah shook her head “Actually… I was hoping if I could ask you to have dinner with me. I really want to talk to you about something important.”