Chanyeol POV

“Who did you invite along?” I asked Lay furiously, knocking over my carton of bok choy in my anger. “Argh, dang it.” I attempt to salvage what’s left of the cabbage and scoop it onto my plate. "Thanks a lot, Lay." 

“What's so wrong about inviting Minah?” Lay says casually, but his eyes are calculating. He’s trying to see how I react to the fact that my ex-girlfriend-not-girlfriend-love interest is going to be spending 5 days on a resort with us.

If he wants a reaction, I'll give him a reaction. I reach across the table and chuck a box of sesame chicken at his face. Spluttering, Lay attempts to wipe the honeyed liquid out of his face. I cackle as bell peppers and onions fall down his shirt, along with large pieces of chicken. "Revenge! REVENGE!" I screech. 

"What is wrong with you?!" Lay yells, grabbing a handful of napkins. "You've gone absolutely crazy-,"

“Tell me this: why Minah of all people?" I speak her name like I'm saying "the spawn of Satan"... which she is. "Just- just go pick someone else! Or better yet, don’t bring anyone to the company retreat.” I frustratedly run my hands through my hair. “You know what, I don’t want to go to the resort. Forget it.”

Lay sighs. “Chanyeol, you have to get out of the dorm. You’ve been cooped up in here every minute that we haven’t been practicing or performing. Stop playing your stupid little video games.”

“Pokemon is not stupid,” I hiss menacingly. “And I stay in here because I don’t feel like going outside. At all. I don’t particularly like people.”

“Stop saying that, man.” Lay punches my arm. “You used to be the Casanova of Seoul Performance Secondary School. And now you’re...,”

“Now I’m what?” I demand. Okay, well, sure, I’ve stopped talking and laughing and flirting... and I don’t really go on dates- let alone socialize with any person apart from my bandmates- and I don’t pay as much attention to what I wear anymore. I've stopped caring. 

And by this point, to be honest, I don’t think I could get a date even if I wanted to. I’m starting to be known as Mr. Greasy. And not the good kind of greasy, either.

It’s all because of stupid Minah. She started avoiding me full-time. She doesn’t go to Slappy’s to pick up Won Bin anymore (he doesn’t come either; maybe he’s growing up and getting over the thrill of arcades, which is quite a shame). She runs away from me at school whenever she sees me. The only kind of looks I receive from her at all are glares. 

I used to be such a prominent part of her life and vice versa. Now we're not connected at all.

I'll admit it, it made me feel sad. Like there was a hole in me. So I just kind of retreated away from people; spent more time by myself, playing video games. It made me forget about her for a little bit. 

I wish I had never, ever-

Don't think about that night, Chanyeol, I command myself. Doing that will just dredge up my stupid mistakes and actions. 

"Minah’s coming and that’s that,” Lay tells me stubbornly. “You don’t have to talk to her. Just be mature around her, okay?”

“Fine! I will,” I scowl. “She won’t be graced with my presence. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go pack.” I strut off to my bedroom and start shoving things into my old, oversized suitcase.

Great. This whole resort trip is going to be terrible. I don't want to deal with her. But at the same time, I want to see her... argh! This is so confusing!

As I’m packing though, I come to a realization.

The whole talk about Minah makes me remember her day self and her night self, and then my day self and my night self, and it hits me: I don’t have two sides to myself anymore. Now I just have my real “night self”.

And although I’m borderline antisocial (actually, more like full-on antisocial), I feel free. I don’t have to act like some hotshot cool playboy the whole day. 

It was getting tiresome.

Strangely enough, the fans still like me. They think it’s cute how I’m so “dorky” and “cute”.

Pft. They obviously haven’t seen me battle Dimentio in Super Paper Mario before if they’re calling me cute.

The concept of me being my “true self” is bittersweet. It has pros, but it has drawbacks, too. 

How has Minah been handling her modeling life and her school life? Is she... doing okay? 

Not that I particularly care. 

Let's face it: Chanyeol's a hot mess right now.