Youngjae knocked lightly on Hei-Ryung's apartment door to announce his presence, then unlocked it and let himself in. Hearing him entering the apartment, Hei-Ryung took one last fleeting glance at herself in the bathroom mirror to make sure she looked presentable and then hurried out to greet Youngjae. Instead of fighting with his shoes as he usually did, Youngjae was waiting patiently for her to come out so they could leave. Smiling nervously, Hei-Ryung hurried over to join him and began slipping on the gray flats she had been intending to wear. As she stooped over to tug on the heel, Hei-Ryung snuck a glance at Youngjae and wondered if she looked too formal for the concert. It wasn't as though she was wearing anything flashy- just a white cable knit sweater hoodie and blue skinny jeans- but somehow Youngjae managed to look even more casual than her simplistic style choice. Black pants, a black, loose-fitting v-neck, white denim jacket, and a black beanie- he looked like the epitome of casual.

     She didn't have time to change, though, so Hei-Ryung resolved herself to being the better-dressed of the two and grabbed the satchel she had left sitting by the door. It didn't actually hold anything of importance in it, but she always saw other girls with a bag and had decided that it would be best if she mimicked them and tried her best to blend in. The last thing Hei-Ryung wanted right now was to stick out like a sore thumb; at least, stick out more than she already believed she would.

     "You ready to go?" Youngjae asked, holding the door open for Hei-Ryung and gesturing for her to go first. Nodding, Hei-Ryung in a deep breath and shuffled into the hall, where she waited for Youngjae to lock up behind them- shouldn't that be her task, considering she was the owner of the apartment?- and nervously played with the owl necklace she had dangling around her neck. After testing the door knob to make sure everything was secure, Youngjae headed towards the elevator without a word. Following suit, Hei-Ryung stayed a few paces behind him.

     "Something is off about her," Youngjae thought, glancing over his shoulder at Hei-Ryung. She was normally quiet and reclusive, but today she seemed even worse than usual. For starters, she refused to look him in the eye, and had kept her face stubbornly pointed at the ground since he walked into the apartment. Even for Hei-Ryung, that was strange. "Maybe the interview didn't go so well yesterday." His uncle had told him that things went over smoothly and that the interview would be published on Monday, but he hadn't been very specific about what 'smoothly' meant. Chewing on his lip thoughtfully, Youngjae pressed the down button.

     "Did everything go well yesterday?" He finally asked as the elevator doors opened, unable to contain himself any longer.

     Looking up at him calmly, Hei-Ryung smiled and nodded her head. "I came, I saw, I conquered," she quoted with a giggle, hurrying into the elevator as Youngjae pressed the ground floor button. "I heard it's going to be published soon," she added, obviously fishing for information.

     Youngjae was more than happy to oblige her: "They're planning on Monday." Glancing at her face from the corner of his eye, Youngjae noticed that Hei-Ryung seemed even more nervous now. "I don't know much else about it, though," he admitted apologetically, to which Hei-Ryung quickly smiled and waved it off.

     "It's okay. Doesn't really matter when it comes out, after all," Hei-Ryung sighed unintentionally, then tried to disguise it as a yawn.

     "It matters if," Youngjae finished, carefully keeping his attention on the descending numbers.

     "Yeah," she admitted, gripping tightly to the metal bar wrapped around the interior of the elevator. Apparently she didn't like the sensations involved with elevators. With nowhere to take the conversation, Youngjae had no choice but to let it die. As though sensing that it was a quiet moment, the elevator came to a gentle stop and silently opened its doors to allow the two out. Keeping close behind Youngjae, Hei-Ryung followed him out into the disappearing light; the sun had already begun dipping behind the sky line, leaving deep shadows throughout the city.

     "So, are you excited for the concert?" Youngjae asked, leading the way to the bus stop.

     "Kind of, but I'm mostly nervous." He couldn't say that he was surprised- Hei-Ryung was nervous about most everything. "It's silly, but I see it as a kind of scary thing."

     "Then why go?"

     "I promise I would, so now I have to keep that promise," she sounded slightly defeated, as though there really were no escape for her. Apparently, giving her word was the same as slapping herself in chains for Hei-Ryung.

     "I'm sure that he was just handing out tickets to anyone who happened to come along. You shouldn't feel pressured into going just because he happened to come across you, Ms. Cha. If you don't want to go, then don't go," Youngjae reasoned, picking up the pace so that they could make the bus that had just turned the corner. Also hurrying along, Hei-Ryung tried to lengthen her strides so that she could match Youngjae's pace. Fortunately for the both of them, they were jogging up to the bus station just as the bus was pulling in, and were able to join the small crowd piling onto the metal behemoth.

     After swiping both their cards, the pair took a seat at the back of the bus, with Youngjae on the end to insure that Hei-Ryung wouldn't have to be near any strangers.

     "I'm surprised that you're trying to talk me out of going," Hei-Ryung spoke up as the doors closed and they began pulling out onto the road. "You shouldn't be doing that, you know. This is a sociable experience, and you're supposed to be making me take advantage of those; do your job correctly, Mr. Yoo!" Although her voice was light-hearted as she playfully scolded him, and Hei-Ryung obviously didn't mean anything by it, Youngjae couldn't help feeling a little hurt by her words. It wasn't as though the only thing he cared about was his job- especially since that job was a living person. Besides, after she was brave enough to face her interview yesterday, Youngjae wouldn't have a problem with giving Hei-Ryung a break and letting her hide in her apartment for a while. They didn't have to be running around Seoul every day, after all.

     For most of the trip, the two traveled in silence. However, as they began approaching their stop, Hei-Ryung suddenly turned to Youngjae. "Did Seulki tell you about the interview?" she asked, wringing her hands nervously.

     "Ms. Lee doesn't tell me anything, Ms. Cha," he chuckled, standing up as the bus began to slow. Following his lead, Hei-Ryung gripped the back of the seat in front of them to keep from falling over as the brakes were hit and the bus jolted to a halt. When she was certain that there would be no more movement, she tentatively followed Youngjae off the bus. The sun had disappeared since they first set out, but they weren't left wanting for light as they stepped onto the sidewalks of Hongdae.

     Widening her eyes in surprise, Hei-Ryung stared at the colorful, bright lights lining the streets, filled with people to near bursting. The only clue that it was night was the inky black sky overhead. Youngjae, unfazed by the bustle of Hongdae, dug his ticket out of his pocket and headed straight into the middle of the crowd to look for the club this concert was supposed to be at. Following closely behind, Hei-Ryung fixed her eyes on Youngjae's back and refused to look anywhere else, fearing that if she did she would lose sight of Youngjae and become lost all over again. Apparently, Youngjae was also worried about losing Hei-Ryung, because every so often he would glance over his shoulder or ask her a question to make sure that she was still there.

     Eventually, they turned down a small side street and found the club printed onto the tickets. It was small and lacked the neon lights the main street clubs boasted, but it didn't look suspicious. A man stood at the front door, and after seeing Youngjae and Hei-Ryung's tickets he let the two of them pass. As she passed him, Hei-Ryung avoided making eye-contact. Nothing about him suggested that he was dangerous, but Hei-Ryung couldn't shake the prickling feeling at the back of her neck that suggested something was wrong.

     "Of course something is wrong- I'm a club in the middle of Hongdae instead of at my apartment. Everything is wrong!" After entering the club, Youngjae led the way to a table tucked away into a back corner and took a seat. Following him closely, Hei-Ryung slipped nervously into the seat across from him. After a moment of staring blankly at the swirling patterns of silver on the otherwise black surface, Hei-Ryung folded her arms on the table top and buried her face into them.

     Sighing, Youngjae watched her for a brief second before looking around at their surroundings. Most of the area was a dance floor, doubling as standing room for the concert tonight. The left wall was lined by booths alternating between black and silver coloring and slowly being filled as more people showed up for the show. Along the right wall was a bar, which, though currently unmanned, already had a few customers. At the front of the room, a temporary stage had been erected.

     "The bathrooms are by the bar," Hei-Ryung mumbled, noticing that Youngjae was taking inventory of the club. Surprised that she was paying attention to anything beyond her own worries, Youngjae glanced in the direction Hei-Ryung had mentioned and noticed that, indeed, there was a small hall with a sign informing all patrons that the bathrooms were located at the end. Of course the bathrooms would be the first thing that Hei-Ryung took note of- the only thing about it that surprised Youngjae was that she hadn't already set up residence in them.

     Shifting uncomfortably in her seat, Hei-Ryung buried her face further into the sleeves of her hoodie. The air in here was not air, but a permanent haze of cologne and perfume stirred by the moving bodies of patrons, and no matter which way Hei-Ryung turned her head, she couldn't escape its choking grip. Finally, Hei-Ryung reached into her bag and pulled out the mask Youngjae had loaned her all that time ago. Pulling it onto her face, she glanced over at Youngjae and noticed that he was watching her.

     "I'm sorry I've been holding onto it for so long. I promise I'll give it back to you after the concert, unless you would like it now," she told him, already starting to take the mask off so that she could give it back to its rightful owner.

     "It's alright, you can hold onto it for now," Youngjae assured Hei-Ryung, leaning back in his seat to watch as the first singer took to the stage.

     They were talented, but the sound system had been set up so that their voice pounded through the speakers; coupled with the high-intensity cheering of the packed crowd, it made for a very noisy atmosphere. Shrinking into her seat, Hei-Ryung squeezed her hands into fists and felt her nails beginning to bite into the tender skin of her palm. The pain soon faded into the background, though, and Hei-Ryung was able to comfortably ignore it while continuing her nervous habit. As the first performance came to an end, Hei-Ryung loosened her grip long enough to silently pat her hands together in applause. The second performance was put on by an indie rock group, and their instruments only added to the intensity of the situation and encouraged the crowd to become more wild. Across the table from her, Youngjae had stood and was cheering along with the rest of the crowd, apparently comfortable with the situation. Hei-Ryung, though, was still quietly sitting in her seat and watching the performance with an almost stony expression. However, by the third performance, she was becoming accustomed to the club scene and had begun to grow comfortable with it.

     Obviously, the third performer was popular, as the crowd quickly surged towards the stage in order to be nearer to her. As she sang, various chants began starting up- no more than two or three people were saying the same thing, though. The chanting was not organized, which made it easier for Hei-Ryung to quietly chant along with whichever group happened to be the loudest at the moment. Nobody would care what she was saying in this sort of chaos, after all. As the performance came to an end, Hei-Ryung joined in on the applause and allowed a smile to briefly appear on her face. Although it was difficult to admit it to herself, she was having a good time.

     Next, another band filed onto the stage, followed by two men. The first was dressed in a black leather jacket and black jeans, a similar color scheme to Youngjae's but with a completely different feel. The only color he wore was on his head, where his bright red hair resided. The man behind him had also dyed his hair to a caramel blonde, and was dressed similarly.

     "That's him!" Hei-Ryung exclaimed, reaching over the table and poking Youngjae's arm. "That's the guy who gave me the tickets- the one with the blonde hair!" Following where she was pointing, Youngjae quickly spotted the man she was talking about. Instantly, he recognized his face. "I still can't remember his name, though. I had been hoping I'd be able to recall it when I saw his face, but-"

     "Daehyun. Jung Daehyun," Youngjae supplied, easing into his seat and hoping that Daehyun hadn't spotted him in the crowd.

     "Right! How did you know, though?" Puzzled, Hei-Ryung turned to look at Youngjae.

     "They just introduced themselves. Jepp Blackman is the red head, and Jung Daehyun is the blonde one." Youngjae didn't intend to press his luck any further, so he kept his mouth shut as the band prepared their instruments. Jepp was quietly standing at his microphone stand and shifting from side to side as he waited for the music to start, occasionally waving at the crowd or risking a smile that showed every inch of his mouth. Daehyun, on the other hand, was crouched at the edge of the stage and chatting amiably with whoever was within ear shot. Same old Daehyun.

     Folding his arms over his chest, Youngjae sighed and watched his childhood friend hurry and take his place at the microphone after being scolded by Jepp. Grinning sheepishly, he tried getting in a few more comments before the music started and interrupted him. The song began as a rap, performed by Jepp Blackman. Not a fan of the style himself, Youngjae was easily able to keep his attention focused on Daehyun. Hei-Ryung, though, was attempting to divide her attention between the both of them. The moment Daehyun opened his mouth and began to sing, though, she was completely enraptured by him. Rolling his eyes, Youngjae wondered just what magical quality Daehyun's voice possessed that managed to put a dreamy smile on every girl's face- regardless of how strange that girl might be. It was a talent his friend had possessed since as long as Youngjae could remember, but now that Daehyun had the looks to match his voice it seemed the ability had become even more potent.

     "He's so serious," Youngjae thought, recalling the many times he had performed alongside Daehyun in the past, and even how he had been behaving prior to the performance. It was hard to imagine that this was the same Daehyun that he had grown up with. "But still a moron,"  Youngjae added, rolling his eyes as Daehyun hit the high notes he was so famous for back home and sent a wave of squeals through the crowd. Beside him, Jepp tried his best to contain a grin and focus on finishing the song, which was already beginning to fade as the band grew quieter. When it came to a close, the crowd erupted into cheers- a good portion of them were cheering for Daehyun, but surprisingly it was Jepp Blackman the majority were cheering for. Raising his eyebrows, Youngjae wondered just how popular amongst the indie crowd this rapper was. Being in the minority didn't appear to bother Daehyun, though. Basking in the applause, he took a quick bow before hurrying off the stage and into a back room.

     "We should thank him afterwards for the tickets," Youngjae decided, turning to Hei-Ryung to see how she felt about it. For a second she ignored him, whether because she hadn't processed what he said or because she didn't want to process what he had said, but when it became clear that Youngjae wasn't going to stop expecting an answer from her, Hei-Ryung nodded reluctantly. "It shouldn't be too hard to get back there and see him," he reasoned, leaning back in his seat to watch as the next performer took the stage.

     "Ms. Kang Kae Cha Hei-Ryung!" Cringing at the apparently permanent nickname, Hei-Ryung took her hand off the door knob and slowly turned to face Daehyun as he approached her with a broad grin on his face. Although coming backstage to thank him had seemed like a good idea- or at least not a terrible one- when Youngjae had suggested it, she had suddenly decided it didn't sound quite so nice upon entering the room and becoming in the instant center of attention. She obviously did not belong amongst them, and so had become a curious novelty that all the performers wanted to stare at. Unnerved, she had been about to leave when Daehyun spotted her and called out her 'name'. "You actually made it!" He exclaimed, gently nudging Hei-Ryung away for the door so that those who were ready to leave could do so.

     All words gone from her mind, Hei-Ryung had to settle on a nod. "Where did Youngjae go?" she thought, glancing around and noticing that he was no longer right behind her.

     "I'm glad you came. It was a really good performance, wasn't it?" Daehyun's voice rose as he turned to look at the other singers and instrumentalists, all of whom let out a collective cheer before going back to cleaning up. Grinning, Daehyun turned back to Hei-Ryung. "Oh, I should introduce you to..." his voice trailed off thoughtfully as he gestured for the red-haired rapper he had performed with to join him. Equally as nervous as Hei-Ryung, he slowly made his way over to them and resignedly allowed Daehyun to wrap one arm around his shoulders. "This is Bang Yong Guk, but he goes by Jepp Blackman while on stage. He's been helping me break out into the music scene here in Seoul." As Daehyun finished introducing him, Yong Guk smiled at Hei-Ryung and bowed politely to her. Returning the gesture, Hei-Ryung tugged on the mask she was still wearing so that she could smile back.

     This caught Daehyun's attention. "Where did you get that?" He asked curiously, pointing to the mask as Hei-Ryung readjusted it to fit snugly on her face.

     "She's borrowing it from me. Why, you have a problem with me loaning out my birthday presents?" Youngjae answered, materializing behind Hei-Ryung. Unsure how he should approach Daehyun, he had been keeping out of sight until the right moment presented itself.

     "Youngjae!" Daehyun exclaimed, reaching over and wrapping an arm around Youngjae's shoulders so he could drag him closer. "What are you doing here?" He demanded, tightening his grip on Youngjae's shoulders so that the latter couldn't squirm away despite his best efforts. "Wait," still preventing Youngjae from getting away, Daehyun looked between his squirming friend and Hei-Ryung, "are you her boss?" He laughed, bringing Youngjae down with him as he doubled over in laughter. Seizing his opportunity to flee, Yong Guk bade Hei-Ryung a quiet goodbye and hurried away. Hei-Ryung didn't exactly blame him for making a break for it.

     "Yah, Jung Daehyun, you're going to kill me!" Youngjae complained, slapping Daehyun's back. Grinning apologetically, Daehyun quickly let go of Youngjae. "And no, I'm not her boss. We just work together... sort of." Daehyun nodded, but didn't seem convinced. Rolling his eyes, Youngjae went on to explain briefly the relationship he and Hei-Ryung had.

     "I thought you were going to break down the doors and usurp the throne," Daehyun chuckled, pulling over a chair and straddling it. "So much for that plan, huh?"

     "Not all of us can be as dense as you. I'm actually planning before I take action," Youngjae retorted, leaning against the wall and frowning at Daehyun.

     "I made plans! Come to Seoul, get famous!" Daehyun protested, but Youngjae remained unimpressed. "So it isn't a very detailed plan. Doesn't mean it won't work!"

     "You forgot the part where you became a high school-dropout-bum."

     "I am not a bum, I'm a singer! Didn't you see me performing?"

     "I saw a moron yowling like a cat."

     "Youngjae! Come on!"

     Smiling to herself, Hei-Ryung sidled her way over to a corner of the room and made herself comfortable on one of the dusty seats found there. Judging by the various junk that had been pushed to the sides of the room, she imagined that this must be a storage area when it wasn't being used as a dressing room.

     "We should go get food," Daehyun suggested, glancing over at Hei-Ryung to see if she was on board. Youngjae, too, turned to look at Hei-Ryung, trying to judge if she was comfortable with the idea.

     "W-what kind of food were thinking of getting?" The last thing she wanted was to have to order food at a restaurant.

     "Fish cakes, or maybe ho-tteok... tteokbokki sounds good, too... there's also a-"

     "Street food," Youngjae interrupted, knowing that if he were allowed to Daehyun would go on listing foods until he ran out of breath and passed out.

     "Street food," Daehyun concurred, moving to wrap an arm around Youngjae but missing when the latter ducked out of the way.

     "I'm okay with it," Hei-Ryung agreed after thinking for a moment. Grinning from ear to ear, Daehyun threw the door open and gestured for them to follow him.

     "Yong Guk, you want to come?" He called over his shoulder.

     "No," came the response from somewhere among the remaining performers. Shrugging his shoulders, Daehyun didn't press any further and nudged Youngjae out the door.

     "Seoul-boy is treating, so go ahead and eat as much as you'd like!" Daehyun informed Hei-Ryung as she passed by him, winking conspiratorially. Infected by his energy, Hei-Ryung smiled a little guiltily and nodded her head. "Hear that, Mr. CEO? Your treat!"

Author's Note

Hm... don't really have much to say about this chapter... except, am I staying in character? I mean, nobody really knows what the boys of B.A.P are like, but there's definitely a general idea amongst the fans. I just hope I'm not getting too far away from their personalities, because then this isn't really much of a fanfic, hehe