The next day I was planning on sleeping in and waking up very late, in hopes of just avoiding everything. I turned off my phone with the decision that I wanted to stay home alone and forget about the events that had unfolded last night. 

 

Never before had I felt so helpless and hurt because of someone else. Maybe it was because I had never loved somebody before. If that was what love felt like, I would have much rather preferred just not having met Seunghyun at all. However the pain that coursed through my body at every thought of him and Hee Sun being together was only the beginning of my worries.

 

Now that both Eun Hee and Seungri knew about my secret, I was terrified that the others would soon find out as well. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust them; I would trust them all with my life. What I didn’t trust was my confidence in being able to face their reactions. But I also didn’t trust my own acting abilities to not make it clear to others, so I was screwed either way.

 

 

Author’s POV:

 

Seungri met with Eun Hee and the two decided to visit Hana at her house. The day after the dinner, the two had sent countless text messages and left hundreds of voicemails, but none of them were answered, and they had become worried. After twenty-four hours of being ignored, they decided to just go directly to her home to check on her and talk about the problem instead of playing a game of hide and seek with their phones. 

 

Seungri was a bit hesitant to go; understanding how she must be feeling, and he tried to convince Eun Hee to give her another day or two to be alone. But Eun Hee was persistent and refused, insisting that Hana needed support, and that they were the only ones that could help her. 

 

Both Seungri and Eun Hee were silent during the drive to the Kim estate. On the inside, they were both as displeased with the current situation as Hana was, and even though it still had not been vocalized, they were furious at Seunghyun. If they were that upset, they could only imagine how hurt Hana must be, and that’s why they had agreed on paying her an early visit, to hopefully make her day a bit better.

 

When they arrived at her home they were greeted by Mrs. Jung, and led to wait in the spacious living room. As Mrs. Jung poured them each a cup of tea, Eun Hee asked her how Hana was doing. 

 

Mrs. Jung smiled sadly as she replied, “She is still sleeping. If you would like, I can go and wake her up for you. She spent all of yesterday sleeping as well; I don’t see how she can still possibly be tired.

 

Seungri shook his head, “No, that’s alright. Let her rest for a bit. We can just wait here. We don’t have any plans today anyway.”  

 

Mrs. Jung nodded “In that case, I will come and get you in a few minutes then. You two can join Mr. and Mrs. Kim for breakfast. That is of course if you haven’t already eaten?” 

 

“We haven’t, and thank you. Breakfast would be great,” Eun Hee smiled appreciatively.

 

Mrs. Jung sent for them about fifteen minutes later, and the two were escorted into the large and eloquently adorned dining room. Upon entering the room, they noticed that Hana’s parents were already present, and had plates of eggs, pancakes, and bacon before them. The two bowed to the couple in greeting as Mrs. Kim stood up and hugged them.  Mr. Kim smiled and nodded his head in from his seat. “Have a seat and eat, we have plenty of food here.”

 

They did as they were told by Mr. Kim, and as breakfast was getting underway and conversation began, Mrs. Kim asked if they had come to see Hana. Eun Hee and Seungri glanced at each other before Seungri took the initiative and answered. 

 

“Yes, we came to see Hana, but she is still sleeping…so if it’s okay we’re just going to wait here for her.” 

 

Mrs. Kim nodded, and dramatically changed her tone from a cheerful one to one of disappointment. “Of course, we understand. If it wasn’t for Hana you would never come to check in on your poor aunt and uncle. We’re not all that interesting anyway.”

 

Seungri shook his hands apologetically. “No, no, we are always happy to come and see you. In fact, we have really missed you.” Eun Hee shook her head while covering her face with the palm of her hand. He really could be an idiot sometimes.

 

Mrs. Kim smiled. “Aw, we missed you too. You know we haven’t seen you guys since the wedding. I’m afraid it is our fault though. We always seem to be out of country or away on a trip.” 

 

“Just like my parents,” Seungri smiled, feeling much more comfortable with the direction the conversation was turning. “My mom is always at the university and my dad is always overseas facilitating the new study abroad programs.”

 

The two went on about business for a few more minutes before Mr. Kim turned the conversation back on course. “Honey, wait, Seungri and Eun Hee didn’t come to talk about hotels and universities. You came because of Hana, correct?”

 

Eun Hee nodded. “Yes. She…hasn’t been herself recently…has she?”

 

Mr. Kim bowed his head. “Yes,” he started. “We came home very late last night and Hana was already in bed. But in the morning, she didn’t join us for breakfast, and when we came back for lunch she was still in her room. She also claimed that she wasn’t hungry and refused dinner. She barely talked all day, and locked herself upstairs. Your Aunt Kim went in and talked to her, but she just said that she was very tired. She was acting very odd.”

 

“Mr. Kim took a deep breath before continuing. “This morning I woke up very early to get some paperwork done on the patio, and I found Hana out next to the pool .I’d imagine that’s why she hasn’t woken up yet. However this morning she did seem very pale, and honestly, I’m worried about her.” 

 

Mrs. Kim nodded, concern etched in her expression. “I noticed she was out of it yesterday, but I was hoping she would be better today. I’m sure she’s not sick; she would have definitely told somebody. She’s not having any problems at school, is she?” She addressed that question to Eun Hee and Seungri. They both shook their heads, their gazes casted down at their laps.

 

“No, she hasn’t had any problems at school. Besides, if she did have any problems she would have told me.”

 

Mrs. Kim nodded and turned to her husband. “Did you talk to her at all this morning when you saw her?” 

 

“Yes. She said that she was up talking to her friends in the States all night. She said that she had gone to bed but couldn’t sleep. I took her up to her room and we talked a bit more until she fell asleep, but she didn’t mention any problems.” 

 

His wife sighed in relief. “Well then that’s good. She just must be tired.”After that they continued their meal while talking about studies and their families.

 

About an hour later, the Kim’s bid their goodbyes and left to go off to work leaving Eun Hee and Seungri alone in the living room again while Mrs. Jung was cleaning the kitchen.

 

Eun Hee nodded towards the stairs. “Come on, it’s getting late. Let’s go wait in her room.” Seungri nodded and the two walked up the stairs and into her bedroom. She was sound asleep, curled up in her blankets with the pillows covering her head. 

 

Sighing, Eun Hee sat on one side of the bed and Seungri claimed the sofa. Their gazes lingered on their friend for a few moments before they directed their eyes at each other and began talking to pass time.

 

HANA’s POV:

 

I had been sleeping and having a dream about my friends back in the United States when the sound of some very familiar voices invaded my dream. They started off as just background noises, but they were soon so omnipresent that I eventually woke up. However the voices didn’t stop. Peeking out from the pillows and blankets covering my face, I saw a pair of dark blue jeans beside me that looked oddly familiar, until I realized that they were mine, and that the legs wearing them had to be Eun Hee who had borrowed them last week. As I continued listening to the voices, I registered that the second voice belonged to Seungri. Seungri was the one who realized I was awake when I turned not so discreetly to steal a look at him.

 

“Well good morning sleeping beauty,” He had his goofy lopsided smile in place as I groaned and threw the blankets off so my face was full revealed.

 

“What are you guys doing here?” I didn’t mean for my voice to sound so hostile, but I was definitely not a morning person, and I was never in a good mood when someone wakes me up.

 

 Seungri’s smile immediately turned down into a frown. “Is that how you greet your friends? No good morning? No, ‘wow thanks for coming to visit me?’ I guess we won’t be paying you any visits in the near future.” He crossed his arms across his chest in a mocking gesture. 

 

“Sorry, I just wasn’t expecting such an early visit.” Hana bowed her head while rubbing her tired eyes. “But what are you two doing here anyway?”

 

Eun Hee shook her head. “We’re just here to see how you’re doing. You weren’t answering your phone yesterday. Are you okay?”

 

 “Yeah, I’m okay, but my head hurts a bit. I didn’t sleep much last night, and I’m sorry about my phone. I just forgot to plug it in to charge I guess.” 

 

Eun Hee just nodded. “Take your time and take a shower. We will wait for you downstairs. Come on Seungri.”  She motioned for Seungri to follow her downstairs, leaving me alone in my bedroom. It didn’t take a genius to figure out why there were really here.

 

I headed off to the bathroom to take a shower and brush my teeth. Looking in the mirror was painful. My eyes were swollen and red, and my hair was a tangled mess. Maybe Eun Hee and Seungri being here was a good thing. It gave me a chance to fix this before it got any worse.

 

My shower felt immaculate, and as I pulled my clothes on – which were just a simple t-shirt and jean shorts – It was hard to remember a time that I had felt more refreshed. With my hair still damp from the shower, I padded down the stairs to meet with my friends in the living room. 

 

“Okay, let’s eat.” I tried to sound cheerful, but my tone was so impassive that even I wasn’t convinced. 

 

Eun Hee shook her head. Her expression made it clear that she as well wasn’t fooled by my sad attempt at passing off as happy. “Sorry, we already ate with your parents.” 

 

I chuckled awkwardly in an effort to mask my previous tone. “So you guys must have come extremely early to meet them then. They always wake up really early.” That time my voice still sounded a bit flat, but it was definitely an improvement. 

 

It obviously worked though since both Eun Hee and Seungri smiled. “Here, let’s go into the kitchen so you can eat. We can talk in there.” Seungri gently grabbed my wrist and led me off to the kitchen with Eun Hee trailing behind. I guess they still weren’t satisfied.

 

I quickly made a plate of toast, and while I was eating, I didn’t fail to notice how Seungri and Eun Hee would glance over at each other awkwardly before turning back towards me with overly enthusiastic smiles in place. To me it seemed like they were debating on who would start the conversation. 

 

Sighing, I pushed my plate away from me. “I’ll start the conversation since neither of you are going to. You want to talk about yesterday, right?”

 

Both of them stared at me with their eyes wide and mouths open. But as fast as their shocked expressions came, they left and were replaced with looks of embarrassment.  

 

“You knew?” Eun Hee whispered, staring at her hands that were twisting uncomfortably on top of the table. 

 

I simply shrugged. “I don’t see any other reason that you guys would come together so early in the morning while we’re still on break after midterms.” 

 

“Well you’re right, so let’s get straight to the point then.” Seungri spoke up. I was surprised at the sudden conviction in his voice. “So when are you planning on telling him?”

 

“What?” I shook my head, unprepared for him to ask such a question. “Are you crazy? There’s no way I can tell him.” 

 

Eun Hee agreed. “Yeah, she can’t tell him now. It would just make his situation awkward.”

 

“No, Eun Hee, it’s not a question of time.” I clarified. “It is true that I can’t tell him now because he has a girlfriend. But even if he didn’t have a girlfriend, I couldn’t tell him anyway. Seunghyun only sees me as a younger sister.”

 

Seungri shook his head frustrated. “Their entire relationship doesn’t even make sense. Hyung is not the type of person to jump into a serious relationship. Come one Eun Hee, you know that he’s a lady-killer. He’s never been serious about anyone, and I can’t believe that he could change his mind so quickly.  And we all saw him at dinner. Have you ever taken hyung to be the kind of guy to be so been so lovey-dovey with someone in front of us?”

 

 Eun Hee just shook her head, and Seungri nodded, carrying on with his opinion. This time his words were directed at me. “What makes you so convinced about him liking you like a sister and not seeing you in a different way? He’s never said anything about that to you before? Has he?” 

 

“No, but it’s obvious, isn’t it? You can see it when he talks to me. The way he talks to me and treats me, it’s the same way he acts when he is with Eun Hee.” I nodded in her direction. 

 

I could see sympathy in both of their eyes, at it only made me feel worse. I really didn’t want to talk about this anymore. “Look, even though I like him, we’re just not meant to be, and I can’t change that. Yesterday I decided to let him go and just act normally around him. I shouldn’t have tried to cross the friendship line anyway. I’ll be fine, so there really isn’t any reason to feel sorry for me. Let’s just forget everything and talk about something else, okay?” Throughout my explanation, I noticed my voice getting softer and softer as I tried to convince myself of the lie. 

 

However I wasn’t the only one not fooled. Eun Hee wasn’t persuaded at all. “Yeah Hana, that’s why you spent last night crying, and why you barely were able to sleep. Your parents are worried about you. They asked us if you were having problems at school. What were we supposed to say?”

 

I took a deep, shuddering breath trying to compose myself. “No, you’re right. It’s not easy for me to forget about it so fast. Everything he did, and still does, it makes my heartbeat race. But now, not only does my heart race, but it also hurts. Like when we were up on the rooftop and he was trying to take care of me, or when he smiles in my direction. All I feel now is pain.” I had been trying so hard to conceal the hurt tearing my body apart, but my emotions betrayed me, and tears cascaded down my cheeks. 

 

Quickly wiping them away, I coughed as a way to hide the awkwardness and tried yet again to change the atmosphere by turning to Seungri. “Speaking of which, you couldn’t have thought of a different lie yesterday?”

 

“No,” Seungri’s serious composure faltered as he broadly smiled. “But he believed it, didn’t he? So you should be thankful.”  

 

I took my phone out and scrolled through my text messages. “Before I tried going to bed the other night, he sent me a message asking if I was okay. He also wanted to know if I took my medication. Do you know how embarrassing that is?” I tried to get my tone to be angry, but it didn’t work, and Seungri only laughed as my face turned red. “This isn’t funny, Seungri!”

 

But if I were being completely honest with myself, I knew that I found his concern to be very sweet, but that only made my heart ache more.”

 

 

My diversion seemed to have worked, because we spent the rest of the morning talking about our upcoming semester. Hopefully that last conversation would be the end of the entire situation, because I truly did want to forget about my feelings towards Seunghyun, even though it wasn’t what my heart really wanted.

 

 

 

 

The after midterms break was over, and as Mr. Go drove me to the university, I was eager to see my friends again. I hadn’t seen any of them since Eun Hee and Seungri’s visit being that I had accompanied my parents on a business trip to Busan – half out of wanting to, and half out of wanting to avoid a few certain people.

 

 When I arrived at the parking lot, I saw that everybody was already there talking to each other, so I walked overly quietly, not wanting to be noticed right away. However as much as I tried to just casually slip into the group, Eun Hee noticed me right away and made it very obvious as she greeted me with a huge hug. The others all joined in; however it was hard as Seungri enveloped me in a tight hug, and wasn’t making it easy for the others to get to me. 

 

I laughed as Jiyong helped me pry Seungri off. “I missed you guys so much. It was weird having peace and quiet.”

 

Daesung chuckled. “Well next time you’ll just have to spend the break with us.”

 

“That would be fun,” I smiled in his direction before turning to talk to Eun Hee who was practically jumping up and down with excitement due to all of the stories she had to tell me from the rest of break. 

 

We all talked for a few more minutes until it was time for us all to get to our classes. Seungri cheerfully slung his arm around my shoulders and began steering me away. When we were already a good few feet away he turned his head and called back, “See you all at lunch!”

 

Once we were out of sight of the others he stopped and ran a hand through his hair. “Are you okay? I mean, you know, you’re not upset or anything, right?”

 

I lightly slapped his shoulder. “Yes, I’m fine, and I told you to forget about it.” 

 

He laughed as he rubbed his shoulder. “Okay, okay, I’m sorry. I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

 

“I appreciate the concern, but just forget about it. I’ll be fine. Now come on, we’re going to be late.”

 

Even though it was the first day after break, we were still given a large amount of homework; and while I would normally complain with Seungri about how unfair it was, this time I was happy to have all of the assignments. I knew they would be a perfect distraction from all of the other thoughts that flooded my mind whenever I had too much time to think.

 

 

Weeks passed by in the blink of an eye, and before I knew it, it was already March. But it wasn’t just the weeks that had flown by, but also the year. Tomorrow was my birthday, and my mother had decided to take me to the spa to celebrate my birthday a day early.

 

We spent the day relaxing with massages, followed by getting our hair done, and then manicures. Afterwards we went shopping and she bought me a few new dresses. It was the first mother-daughter day that we had spent together in months, and in that moment, I was extremely grateful that even though my parents were always very busy, they still managed to take time to remember my birthday.

 

That evening, after getting dressed in one of my new dresses – and the off the shoulder knee-length purple one, with sequins accenting the waist line – we met with my father to have dinner.

 

My parents had decided to celebrate my birthday with them a day early so I had all of tomorrow to celebrate with my friends. I appreciated their consideration, and it really didn’t matter to me which day they celebrated my birthday, but I wasn’t sure how much I would be celebrating tomorrow, since I couldn’t remember telling my birthday date to any of my friends. As far as I knew, even Eun Hee was unaware that tomorrow was my birthday; however it didn’t bother me in the slightest. I was never a big fan of celebrating my birthday anyhow, since I never really had many friends to celebrate with when I was younger.

 

.

The next day was March 15^th, and I woke up to my parents waiting for me at the dining room table with a large box. Mrs. Jung had already prepared my favorite breakfast, and my mother ran over and embraced me in a hug. 

 

“Good morning sweetie, happy birthday! I can’t believe my baby is all grown up!”

 

“Thanks umma,” I hugged her back and then went over to hug my father. 

 

It turned out that inside of the box was another new dress. It was absolutely gorgeous. It had a white cream bodice and a flowing black sheer skirt. It was simple yet elegant, and I couldn’t wait to wear it. My mother chuckled at that. 

 

“Well you won’t have too long to wait. I know that we said you could hang out with your friends all day today, however we invited some family members and friends over for dinner tonight, and they wanted to celebrate your birthday with you. Of course, you can invite your friends as well, and you can go out tonight.”

I smiled and convinced my parents that I had no problem staying home for dinner tonight, and thanked them for the dress. I quickly ate breakfast with them and then I had to leave to head out to school.

 

During the ride I checked my phone and found several messages from my friends back in the US, all of them wishing me a happy birthday and hoping that I would have a great day. I cheerfully replied to them, thanking them for remembering and promising them that I would have a fantastic day.

 

 

When I arrived to the university, I was expecting a normal “Good Morning” greeting from everyone, but instead was welcomed with a hug from Jiyong with an exclamation of, “Our little baby has grown up! Happy birthday, Hana!”

 

 I was really surprised and froze in his embrace. I was trying to figure out how they found out about my birthday as the others came up and congratulated me, each one giving me a hug of their own. Seunghyun was the last person to hug me, and afterwards he let his arm rest around my shoulders which definitely made me a bit uncomfortable. However I tried to my best to hide it and let my eyes look anywhere but in his. 

 

“Thank you so much everyone, but how did you know about it?” I asked, still visibly stunned, and everyone laughed as Eun Hee answered my question.

 

“We did our research. There’s nothing that we can’t find out with our connections. There are no secrets that we don’t know about.” When the others saw my eyes widen, my expression only made them laugh harder. Eun Hee chuckled. “I’m just kidding. We found out after we discovered who your parents are. You forget that their parents are best friends with yours. All we had to do was ask.” I laughed nodding. That did made a lot of sense.

 

After everyone hugged me again, everyone started talking so I was left alone with Seunghyun, whose arm was still hanging onto my shoulders. Thankfully he broke the awkward silence by asking, “What are you planning on doing tonight to celebrate, Mini?”

 

I raised my head so I could look him in his eyes for the first time this morning, and the effect caused my stomach to flutter and flip. I ignored my racing heartbeat and tried to act normal as I playfully whined, “Oppa, you don’t have to call me Mini anymore. I’m not a child.”

 

He chuckled in his deep baritone that sent my head reeling, as he ruffled my hair. “It’s not about age, Mini. It’s all about size. You will always be my short little Mini, so I’ll always call you Mini.”

 

 I sighed and nodded in defeat. 

 

“Now you should answer my question. How are you celebrating tonight?”

 

“Well some of my family is coming over tonight, so you are all invited to dinner at our house if you want to come” 

 

Jiyong bounded into the conversation. “Yes, we would all love to come! And after dinner we will go to a nightclub to celebrate without the adults. What do you think? Sounds like fun, huh?” 

Everyone agreed, and Taeyang pointed out the obvious. “It will be Hana’s first time there. This could be interesting.” Then the bell rang and we all sprinted off to our classrooms to face another day of school, for another average day, even though for me it wasn’t average at all.

 

 

The day had flown by and it was already five. The guests had all arrived and were waiting as I descended the staircase down to the sitting room where everyone was situated. My silver strapped heels clicked softly as they hit the wooden stairs, and my strapless knee length, pale pink party dress swished gracefully around my knees. 

 

I had planned on wearing the dress that my parents had given me in the morning, but my mother simply insisted that I wear the pink one instead. The dress was simple, nothing fancy or intricate about it aside from the back, which covered up to my lower-back and then had thin pale pink straps which crisscrossed up the rest of her back. My hair fell down in large curls, and my make-up was simple, with only my eyeliner which I had used to add wings onto the corners of my eyes to add a touch of flair. Overall, I thought I looked very pretty.

 

When I stepped down into the sitting room, I greeted my grandparents and aunt and then my friends and their parents. Everybody gave me hugs and wished me happy birthday. Once again, somehow, Seunghyun was the last one to hug me. 

 

Everybody mingled and talked for a few more minutes before my parents decided that it was a good idea to open the gifts that my friends and family had brought me before we all ate dinner. I had a small mound of gift boxes piled before me, and I thanked everyone before opening the first gift. I opened all of the gifts from my family and the other adults first, which mainly consisted of hair bows, books, and envelopes of cash. I then proceeded on to open the presents from my friends.

 

Eun Hee and Taeyang bought me a black and white Chanel dress which looked stunning even in the box. Seungri gave me a silver charm bracelet watch which sparkled in the chandelier light. Jiyong, a pair of red sandal heels, and Daesung and Minzy, a super cute purse which matched the shoes from Jiyong. Finally I came to the last present, which happened to be from Seunghyun. 

 

I carefully opened the gold wrapping paper and found a small white jewelry box. I opened the box and softly gasped at the gorgeous necklace inside. It was a silver outline of a heart, encrusted with shimmering diamonds. A small swirl of diamonds and silver curled down into the heart, and at the end, placed slightly off center, positioned in between the stray swirl and the outline; a single brilliant rose quartz stone, all hanging on a thin silver chain. My mind was fogged by the simple yet elegant beauty of the necklace before I remembered that I was still at my party.

 

 “Thank you guys,” I blushed at my own hesitation. “Thank you so much, but you really didn’t have to trouble yourselves and buy such expensive gifts.”

 

“Of course we did,” Seungri beamed. “You deserve only the best.” 

 

I smiled and looked down blushing at his comment. It really was all too much, even though I appreciated every single gift. 

 

I was slowly putting all of my gifts in some form of order when Mrs. Choi told me to wear the necklace her son gave me because it perfectly matched my dress. I couldn’t deny that she was wrong. It was a bit eerie how the necklace seemed to be almost made for this dress – the dress which my mother had insisted on me wearing. But I brushed the thought aside as I removed the necklace from its box.

 

I was going to put it on by myself, but before I knew it, Seunghyun had swiftly swiped the necklace and clasped it around neck. His act made my heart skip a beat and I could feel my face flush as I turned to him and smiled. “Thank you so much. I really like it. You have great taste.”

 

He returned the smile. “My pleasure, Mini.” 

 

After opening gifts we all went and ate dinner which was surprisingly uneventful. It was mainly all of the adults talking with each other and my friends and I talking about pointless topics. 

 

After dinner, the women went out to sit in the garden, and the men situated themselves in the living room. I was outside in the garden sitting next to Eun Hee and my mother when I began to get cold since I wasn’t wearing my coat, so Eun Hee, Minzy, and I decided to go back inside the house.  As we passed by the room where the men were all sitting on our overstuffed furniture, my grandfather called me over. “Where is my princess going?”

 

I chuckled and walked into the room. Eun Hee and Minzy had gone back out to the garden so I walked in alone. I smiled at my grandfather and replied, “Its cold outside. I came in to grab my jacket.” I moved my arms around to show off the white knit jacket I had grabbed from my bedroom. He smiled and motioned for me to sit next to him. I walked over and let him embrace me as I kissed him on the cheek and sat beside him. My grandfather, ever since I was little, had always loved spoiling me. 

 

Somehow I had been assimilated into the conversation, and we began talking about school and I told them how many grade levels I skipped and that’s why I had applied for college at such a young age. Daesung and Seunghyun nodded as they had skipped quite a few grade levels themselves.

 

Just after I had explained why I had decided to move back from the United States to study back home, Mr. Choi smiled in my direction. “You are so sweet, and smart, and beautiful. I wish I had you as a daughter.”

 

I was about to thank him, but before I had the chance, I heard Seungri’s voice interrupt, “Or perhaps as a daughter in law.” 

 

I sent a death glare in Seungri’s direction, and he knew instantly that I was pissed off. To make matters worse, even Seunghyun who had been idly sitting and listening to the conversation had become visibly uncomfortable. However it was unbeknownst to the others as everyone else simply laughed at his comment. 

 

Mr. Choi chuckled as he placed a hand on his son’s shoulder which caused Seunghyun to stiffen and cringe. “Yes, that would be quite nice.”

 

 My father decided it was his turn to step in and defend me as he had at least noticed my face slowly shading in to light pink. “My baby is still quite young to be talking about marriage. I can’t just give her to anybody. Now who wants some coffee?”

 

However, as appreciative as I was that my father had stopped the conversation, all I could think about was how Seunghyun had reacted to his father’s words. He had cringed…he had actually cringed. My hopes fell even further down then they originally had been.

 

After the men had their coffee and the women came in for dessert, Jiyong asked my father if they could all take me to a club to celebrate by ourselves. His question grabbed the attention of not only my father, but my mother too. 

 

 “I don’t mind,” my mother answered while my father seemed to be debating on his answer. But Daesung and Seunghyun, can you two please keep an eye on her? It will be her first time there, and she doesn’t know her alcohol tolerance since she has never had a drink before.”

 

“And no boys,” My father finally interjected after he realized I was going whether he liked it or not. “No boys, whatsoever.”

 

“Don’t worry uncle,” Daesung smiled encouragingly. “We’ll keep a very close watch on her.”

 

I made sure that I had my coat as we walked out the door, and together, Daesung, Seunghyun, Minzy, Eun Hee, Taeyang, Jiyong, Seungri, and I all piled into our respective cars, and drove off to the biggest night club in Seoul. 

 

Jiyong and Seungri had already booked a V.I.P. room, so we were allowed admission instantly. The first thing that greeted us as we stepped foot through the large bulky double doors was loud blaring music and think pungent smoke. It was very crowded, and to be honest, at first I was a little bit afraid. I had been so startled by the intensity of the atmosphere that I grabbed onto the first thing I could get my hands on which happened to be Daesung’s arm, and he chuckled as he led me and the rest of the group to the large V.I.P. room. 

 

When we arrived at the room I sighed in relief. I slipped out of my coat and tossed it over to the couch with all the other discarded coats. A few minutes later, Taeyang took hold of my hand in his left, and Eun Hee’s in his right, and we went out to hit the dance floor. The others wasted no time in following us.

 

At first I was shy with my dancing, as I wasn’t used to so many others dancing so close, but after one song with Taeyang and Eun Hee, my timidity began to wane until it was completely  gone, and I was immersed in the energy of the club. Seunghyun, Daesung, Eun Hee and Jiyong went back to the room after four songs, but Taeyang and Seungri stayed out with me for nine of them until it was obvious that I was getting tired and they insisted I rest for a bit. 

 

When we joined the others back in the room, all three of us were coated in sweat, and our hair was wet and matted to our flushed foreheads and cheeks. Nobody had time to comment though as Taeyang fist pumped the air as he plopped down next to Eun Hee on the couch.  “Hana, she really does dance well.” He addressed the entire room. “She went out there and owned the dance floor.”

 

I laughed as I took a seat next to Seungri who was gulping copious amounts of what I assumed was water. “Thank you, oppa. You dance very well too.” 

 

Eun Hee smiled as she laid a kiss on his sweaty cheek, and then giggled as he responded by placing a gentle kiss on her hand.

 

However their affectionate endeavors were sidetracked by Seungri who threw an arm around me as he exclaimed, “And so many guys were trying to seduce her! You would have thought she was an idol or something the way the guys couldn’t stay away. But she didn’t care about them. She just stayed close to us and all of the guys looked really jealous.” Seungri goofily smiled and I lightly smacked his chest.

 

We were all laughing, joking, taking pictures, and having a good time, and I was just beginning to think that this was just maybe the best birthday I had ever had. Everyone was drinking except for Taeyang and I. Daesung and Seunghyun only had one drink because Seunghyun was going to drive, and they both wanted to make sure that they could look after me since they had promised my father. 

 

I was having a great time until Eun Hee decided to give me a drink to try. At first I was hesitant, but after the encouragement of my friends, I tilted the glass and let the liquid pour down my throat, scorching it. It was bitter and even though it was ice cold, I could feel my mouth and throat burning. I was pretty positive that I didn’t like it. Still, I finished the glass, and after just that one small glass, I felt weird and dizzy. What made me sure that it wasn’t just that I felt off, but looked it, was when Jiyong made a remark. 

 

“Hana, are you ok? Your cheeks are getting really red. Is the alcohol already kicking in? That was really fast.”

 

All I could do was give a lopsided smile in an attempt to convey the message that I was okay, even though I’m pretty sure it was obvious that I wasn’t’. But after a few more minutes, and after the world stopped spinning, I began to feel good. The burning liquid had cooled and I felt refreshed and alive. I wanted more. I reached out and was going to grab another drink, but I was blocked by Seunghyun who grabbed onto my arm to stop me. I looked at him with pleading eyes. But without even having to hear my unspoken words, as though he read my mind, he sternly answered. “No, you can’t, or else you’ll be drunk. That is if you aren’t already.”

 

Even though I was a bit drunk, I wasn’t an aggressive person. I stared at him blankly for a few moments before softly asking, “Why do you care?” 

 

Seunghyun stared back at me, only his eyes weren’t blank. They were on fire with an emotion I couldn’t quite pinpoint. His tone was strict, but gentle as he explained. “I think you have low alcohol tolerance, and your father asked me to look after you. So stop now before I have to explain to him why you returned home wasted.”  

 

I scoffed and turned to face Seungri, who just like the others, had stopped what they were doing to observe our dispute. 

 

“See Seungri, it’s exactly what I told you.” 

 

Daesung raised an eyebrow and looked over at Seungri, curious.  “What did she tell you?”

 

Seungri shook his head and quickly replied, “Nothing, she’s just drunk. She doesn’t know what she is saying.” 

 

I sighed, obviously defeated, and I stood up ready to make my way back out to the dance floor alone, a feat that wouldn’t have crossed my mind if I were sober, when Seunghyun grabbed my arm again.

 

“Come on, let me send you home. It’s getting late, and you must be exhausted.”  But I pushed his hand away, and there was nothing gentle about it.  I was being aggressive, and I was getting really pissed.

 

 “Seunghyun-shi,” I accented the honorific. “If you want us to continue being friends; don’t touch me, don’t care about me, and stop being nice to me!” I snapped the last part as tears began to stream from my eyes and stain my cheeks. 

 

I didn’t care if I was embarrassing myself in front of the only friends that I had. I had to get out of there. I quickly slipped out of his grasp, flung the door open, and dashed out of the V.I.P. room, away from my friends, but more importantly, away from him.

 

 

 

Author’s POV:

 

Very seldom did Seunghyun ever get annoyed by people to a point where it was obvious. But never in a million year did he think that the person who was going to push him over the edge was Hana. She had never once been anything but nice to him, and her previous outburst had him standing there dumbfounded. He was beyond pissed off.

 

“What happened to her?  What the hell did I do wrong?” He snapped at no one in particular.  His fists were clenched tight and he kicked a chair over.

 

Eun Hee tried to calm him down. “Oppa, don’t worry about what she said. She’s drunk; she didn’t mean any of it.”

 

Her words helped at bit, as he sighed and replaced the chair that he had knocked over before sitting down on it. He removed the pack of cigarettes that he always kept in his jacket pocket, and lit up. When he finished his third cigarette, he got back up on his feet and was about to head out the door until Seungri’s voice stopped him.

 

“Hyung, where do you think you’re going?” 

 

Without hesitation he simply answered. “I’m going to take her home.”

 

But Seungri was getting irritated, and that simple answer was enough to set him off. “Why don’t you just do what she told you and leave her alone. She doesn’t want you to go near her.”

 

Eun Hee ran over to Seungri to stop him from saying something he would regret later, but it was useless. Seungri was steaming, and Seunghyun’s answer didn’t’ help matters. 

 

“She doesn’t know what she wants. She’s drunk. She needs me.” He spoke so nonchalantly, and matter-of-factly, that it was taking all of Seungri’s self-restraint to not skin him alive on the spot.

 

“You are completely wrong hyung! On the contrary, she has never been surer. She has been suffering so much because of you! I’m not going to let her suffer anymore and just sit on the sidelines and watch her fall apart!”

 

Everyone in the room was shocked. Seungri, next to Seunghyun, was definitely the most passive. He was the eternal jokester, and he had just snapped.  Eun Hee was futilely trying to calm Seungri by begging him to shut his mouth, but he paid her no attention. 

 

Seunghyun only rolled his eyes which caused Seungri’s eyes to go livid with animosity. “What,” He spoke in a snarky tone, that was more offensive then defensive; and it didn’t hold a trace of compassion. “I haven’t done anything wrong. I’ve never treated her badly. I’ve been a complete gentleman.” 

 

It was there that he lost his composure and began to yell. “I’ve done everything that I can for her! I’ve been nothing but nice to Hana since the day I met her, so how on earth can she suffer because of me? Tell me!” 

 

Seungri snatched Hana’s coat up from the pile and stalked over to the door. With his hand on the handle, he spun around.

 

“Yes, you did hurt her hyung. You hurt her. You and your stupid new relationship. You ignored her feelings for you, and now she’s falling apart, and you’re too thickheaded to even care to notice that every time you talk to her, she tries not to cry. Every time you touch her, a part of her heart shatters. You’re tearing her apart, and you don’t even care enough about her to notice, hyung!”   Seunghyun and the others couldn’t believe their ears. “Yes. Hana loves you. But you don’t even care that you’re killing her. I’m not going to sit by and watch anymore.” 

 

With that, Seungri slammed the door shut behind him, and he ran down to the dance floor in search for Hana.

 

Back in the room everybody was speechless. The only one who found it possible to form words was Eun Hee, who was mumbling curses at Seungri. “That bastard, why did say it? She told him to keep quiet.” 

 

Taeyang overheard her and spun her around. “So what he said was true? Hana loves Seunghyun?"  Eun Hee didn’t want to betray her friend anymore then Seungri already had, but she didn’t want to lie to her boyfriend either. So instead she just looked down at her feet and didn’t say a word, confirming what everyone had already heard. 

 

Seunghyun was still looking at her, waiting for the response he know wouldn’t come. And after a while he pulled out his phone and car keys. “Let’s go,” He nodded his head towards the door. “The party’s over.” 

 

They were all searching for Seungri and Hana, but after scoping out the dance floor, they only saw Seungri. Jiyong asked if he had any luck finding her, but he only shook his head. 

 

“I don’t know where she could have gone. I can’t find her anywhere.”

 

“Don’t worry, we’ll find her. She wouldn’t just leave.” Daesung tried to calm Seungri down who was becoming hysterical and frantic. 

 

Everyone continued looking for her, but each one came up with nothing. That was until Daesung, the only level-headed one left, asked the bartender.

 

“Hello, did you happen see a girl? She’s alone and she’s petite with long hair and wearing a pale pink dress.” The bartender gruffly nodded and pointed towards two boys that were surrounding a girl who was sitting on a bar chair with her arms on the counter slowly drifting off. 

 

 “She came here, ordered a drink, and was out before I brought it over. Those two have been hanging around for a while now.” 

 

The two boys were trying to wake her by poking her arm and shoulders. To Seungri, they seemed suspicious, and he was proven right when one of them placed a hand on her bare thigh and slowly began to trace up her leg. He was abruptly stopped by Seunghyun who had dashed over faster than any of them and threw the boy to the ground.

 

The group of friends made their way over to Hana while the two boys scurried away and returned to their own table. Eun Hee ran up and pushed Seunghyun aside as she tried to wake her friend.

 

“Hana, Hana, wake up!”  Taeyang helped his girlfriend by gently shaking Hana’s arm.

 

“Hana, do you hear us?” Hana numbly nodded her head, and Seungri sighed as he helped her put her arms into her coat. He didn’t even bother trying to get her to walk, and instead picked her up bridal style and headed out to the car. Her head lulled side to side, but he was careful to not toss around too much. 

 

When they put her inside Taeyang’s car, Eun Hee frantically began to panic to Daesung and Seunghyun.

 

“We can’t bring her home like this. Her parents can’t see her in this state; they won’t trust us ever again.” Seunghyun nodded.

 

“You’re right. I’ll call Uncle Kim and see if he is still awake.” He flipped open his phone and called her father and told him that they wanted to have more fun, so they were going to spend the night with Eun Hee and Taeyang at their apartment. Thankfully he agreed willingly. 

 

When they all arrived at the building, Hana was fast asleep, so Daesung lifted her and carried her into Seungri’s apartment where he gently placed her in Seungri’s bed.  While the boys were getting Hana situated, Eun Hee dashed over to her apartment to grab extra clothes for her and her friend.

 

Seunghyun, Daesung, Jiyong, and Taeyang spent the night in Taeyang’s apartment, while Eun Hee and Seungri stayed with Hana. Even though Eun Hee gave Seungri the cold shoulder the rest of the night, as she was still very angry that he said everything to the others; she was at least grateful that someone had finally stood up for her sad and broken best friend.

 

 

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