Sunday rolled by lazily. Marie had been sent out with the other meisters on a mission in Ailee's place. She even heard that Mia was getting her fair share of action somewhere in Iraq with Allelujah.

Rolling over in her bed, Ailee grunted in frustration. She'd been nothing but dead weight to the others as a spy, and as a meister. Her Gundam was just gathering cobwebs under the sea. But the worst part of it all was that even her homework was left in the capable hands of someone else--Dongwoo.

She decided to do a little cleaning around the house, but Marie had seen to it when she was in school, so there was hardly anything to clean. The most she'd done was prepare dinner for everyone, which she didn't even get to find out if they enjoyed it as much as they enjoyed Marie's cooking or take-outs because she fell asleep waiting for them to come back.

Lockon said it was good, Marie complemented it. But she still wasn't too sure.

Monday finally arrived, and Ailee jumped out of her bed early, excited for the day. After a day of doing nothing, she was ready for school's challenges.

Bright and early, she was in school, pressed and dressed. There was a smile on her face as she anticipated the day, and a surprise waited for her.

"Did you hear about the new kids in school?" Sunggyu asked Ailee.

"New kids?" she asked, emphasizing the plurality of the noun. "As in plural?"

"Yes," he replied. "Dongwoo went to say 'Hi' on behalf of the senior student council members, but it seems they're pretty interesting. I can just imagine what nonsense the boys will spout later at the club meeting."

"What's so interesting about them?" she asked.

"A pair of lovebirds," he replied. "Or that's what Hoya said. They came in together, they're even wearing rings! But he said the most intruiging part of it was that the guy looked like he's from the Middle East and the girl looks like she's from Europe."

And that's when it hit her. Setsuna and Mia were finally in school as well, and it seems they're attracting a lot of attention.

Time ticked by slowly, and Ailee wished she had the ability to fastforward it. She needed to see the two, she needed to talk to them. No one told her about their cover story! No one even told her that Mia was back on earth!

...Then she realized how stupid she was for forgetting. Allelujah was with Mia when she went to space, and the mission in Iraq involved the both of them. Allelujah's mere presence should have conveyed the message to her, even if they forgot to mention it!

"...Ms. Campbell, is anything wrong?" her teacher asked. The whole class seemed to be looking at her. Dongwoo urged her to reply with a discreet gesture.

"I'm sorry, Sir," she replied. "I...I just remembered I forgot to check if I locked the door this morning."

He sighed. "I know that's a serious thing, but please pay more attention in class next time."

"Yes, Sir," she replied sheepishly. A blush crept up her face. A gesture from Dongwoo caught her eye. He seemed to be telling her that it was all right, she would be forgiven.

Right after that class was lunch time, and Dongwoo slipped beside her on her way out. Sunggyu flanked her other side.

"You okay?" Dongwoo asked, worry in his voice.

"Yeah, I'm okay," she replied.

"Forgot to lock the door, huh?" Sunggyu asked sympathetically. "Just hope your brother locked it when he left."

She nodded mutely. They rounded the corner and entered the cafeteria when the familiar figures of the other members of the student council caught her eye. Two more figures were with them, and it didn't take too much for her to realize that they were Setsuna and Mia.

The three of them made their way to the table where the others were, and Mia greeted her cheerily.

"You guys know each other?" Sungyeol asked.

Both Mia and Setsuna nodded.

"Guys," Woohyun called, and he began introducing the new comers to the new students.

"Pleasure to meet you," Mia said with a bright smile, while Setsuna just nodded silently.

"Will you both be joining the student council like Ailee?" Sunggyu asked.

Setsuna nodded. "If it's not too much trouble."

"Nah, we need the extra hands," Sunggyu said. "Mia?"

"I'm just here for a semester," she explained. "I don't think I'll be a very useful to you."

"Just a semester?" the boys of the student council asked.

She nodded. "I've always been homeschooled. My Dad just thought it would be a good idea to try going to school. A learning experience. But he thinks that more than a semester in school would be quite unnecessary. He's really quite eager to get on with my education."

"Doesn't he trust the school?" Hoya asked. "It's really quite good."

"But it doesn't offer courses on Anthropology and other foreign languages," she said. "My father loves anthropology, and knowing about people. There's something to be gained from knowing better about people, you know? And even if I was born in Korea, he thinks it's good if I knew French, just to keep in touch with the source of the Le Creuset name, you know."

"But your name sounds more English than French," Sungjong chirpped.

She shrugged. "That's my Dad for you! But enough about him, tell me more about you and this school."

It seemed so easy to her, so simple. So much so that a small bit of Ailee's heart screamed that she didn't like Mia. Because Mia was everything she was not.

"Why the long face?" Dongwoo asked, peering at Ailee's solemn expression after class. Sunggyu had gone to the club room ahead; he needed to stop by the faculty for something before he got there, leaving the other two who still needed to pack their things.

"What long face?" she asked defensively.

"Defensive? Long faced? Hmm... Those sound like symptoms of jealousy," Dongwoo noted. He then smiled knowingly. "I think that I'm a good enough friend to you, right? Tell me what's wrong, maybe we can find a way around it."

Ailee laughed. He reminded her of a guidance councellor, who paitiently listened to every bit of the problem, even if the most that one needs is a listening ear. And true enough, she had grown quite attached to him over the days, with much thanks to the stunt they pulled for a class just the other day. "I guess I am jealous. There's something about the way Mia and Setsuna look together that it makes me feel jealous without meaning to."

He smiled and nodded patiently. "I think that's because they look like they have that look that tells you they're in love," he said. Just as Ailee dropped the last of her  things into her bag, the freshmen passed by their classroom door. Setsuna had that tight-lipped expression that they'd all seen him wear all day, but his hand was laced with Mia's. Neither of them seemed to take much notice of that fact, however. "See?"

"Is that what love looks like?" she asked.

He shrugged. "I know someone who'd say it varies from person to person, but I think that theirs is the kind where they could simply sit together in a room in utter silence and they'd be perfectly content."

"That would sound like Setsuna's cup of tea," she mused.

"But not Mia's right?" he asked, and she nodded. "But I think that's what makes it all very nice. Because she's not struggling against him, and he's not struggling against her, either. Isn't that the beauty of love?"

"I guess. But I think I'd rather have a boyfriend that speaks a little more," she shrugged, shouldering her bag.

He laughed understandingly. "Let's go," he declared.

They entered the room to find the whole student council there minus just the two of them. Setsuna sat in a corner, speaking with Myungsoo silently, while Mia stepped up the energy levels in the room. Sungyeol had been dancing around like a squirrel on a sugar rush with Woohyun, and  Mia was laughing like a child, watching with glee--and Ailee thought, "Man, she is good at this!"

"Ailee!" Mia called, stepping down from her spot on one of the steps of  the stairs. She wrapped her arms around Ailee in a friendly hug briefly. When she let go, she said, "It's so nice to see you again."

She nodded. "You, too, Mia."

She smiled dazzlingly. "I envy you. You've made so many wonderful friends already, while Setsuna and I just arrived!"

"It was your fault," Dongwoo offered, earning a glare from Ailee but a laugh from Mia. "What?  It's the truth!"

"Yes, yes. He is right! We should have transferred earlier!" she exclaimed. "It's  so much more fun to be in school than to study at home."

Setsuna's phone rang, and he called Mia. They needed to go early.

"Well, we'll see you all tomorrow, then!" Mia said, before she and Setsuna stepped out. They received a boisterous farewell from the boys that had begun to play with a small sack of sand.

Just like on the first few days she'd been at school, Lockon arrived for her, waiting just outside the gates. It was a few hours after school had ended, and she wondered how long he's been there. He caught sight of her through his peripheral vision. He flashed her a smile and pushed himself off the wall he was leaning on. There was a sort of excited gleam in his eye.