http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sAoKmg7qPI

Got7: Girls Girls Girls

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Time progressed, and now, it was spring.

The seven inmates were tightly bonded more than before, and Minseo had grown to accept them as part of her life. Oddly enough, she couldn’t picture her life without them anymore. As much of a nuisance they were, they brightened her life.

After a boring class, the seven of them changed into their orange jumpers and headed to the rooftop for their daily cleaning service.

“You all better not slack. We’ll be nearby, so don’t slack off!” The warden eyed the delinquents and slammed the door as he left. A distinct click told them that he had locked the door.

“Bastard. He locked us out here!” CAP cursed.

“Does he think we cannot escape?” Ricky stomped his left foot.

“Technically, we can’t,” Chunji replied.

“Yeah, right! We can jump off the building and fly like a bird!” Ricky cackled.

Chunji peered below and whistled. “Yeah, I wouldn’t risk that theory if I were you.”

The rest of the inmates came towards the edge and looked downward. “Holy crap. That’s high,” Ricky stated in awe.

“You guys never came up here to clean the rooftop before?” Minseo asked out of curiosity.

“Nope. This is the first time. I guess they ran out of places to make us clean.” Chunji laughed.

“Get your mops, buckets, and sweepers, and let’s go!” CAP ordered. Everyone grabbed something to clean with and started to polish the rooftop.

Minseo scrubbed the concrete edge that was fading into a dirty brown color. She glanced to her right to see Changjo absentmindedly scrubbing his part of the wall. What is he thinking about? He always looks so worried about something. To uplift the mood, Minseo sprayed some bleach at his shoes.

Changjo jolted and stared at her with his intense eyes. “Lighten up, Changjo. You always look like you’re going to be forced to eat someone’s barf,” She pointed out.

“Ewww!” Ricky cried out from the other side.

“Nice simile,” Changjo muttered.

“It’s true though. What are you always thinking about?” Minseo wondered.

“What about you? What are you always thinking about?” Changjo turned the table on her.

She flushed and avoided his gaze. “I asked you first.” “That doesn’t mean I have to reply,” He pointed out.

“Jerk,” Minseo muttered. She glanced at him and couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming amount of irritation for his cryptic behavior. She sprayed bleach on his shoes, just for revenge.

“Hey!” Changjo yelped as he jerked back. Minseo coolly went back to cleaning her part of the roof.

His eyes narrowed. Is that the way you want to play? Fine, then. I can play that game.

Changjo aimed the spray at her back and pushed the trigger. Minseo felt a cold scatter of droplets on her back and whirled around. “You didn’t think I would just stand by and let you take advantage of me, did you?” He smirked. She gritted her teeth and aimed her spray bottle at his face. “You didn’t I would just stand by, did you?”

His eyes flitted to the spray bottle. Touche, Changjo thought. His lips curved upwards into a wide smirk. “Too bad I’m a little faster than you.” He wrenched the spray bottle out of her hand in no time, and before she could process the actions, his arm was around her neck, and her back was pressed against his chest. She smells like coconut and mint, Changjo realized. “Got you,” He whispered by her ear.

Minseo grew red, and her heart fluttered nervously at the proximity.

Changjo slowly released her and put the spray bottle back in her hand. “Learn a lesson, yeah, Go Minseo?” With a gentle smirk, he went back to work. Minseo glanced at him with a mixture of resentment and wonder before going back to her side of the rooftop. She finished scrubbing and dropped the rag into the bucket to rub her cold, red hands.

Spring was here, and the weather was getting warmer, but she would never grow accustomed to having her fingers constantly dipped in bleach and soap. Minseo reached into her pocket and pulled out the Nature Republic Green Tea Hand Lotion. She squeezed the tube, but nothing came out. Her lips curved downwards into a frown. Did I use it all already?

Out of nowhere, a container that was a replica of a peach appeared in front of her. She lifted her gaze to read the label: Tony Moly Peach Anti-Aging Hand Lotion. Minseo raised her eyes and locked gazes with L. Joe. “…You got it from visitor’s day yesterday?” She asked. He nodded in confirmation.

“Thanks…” Minseo took the hand lotion and applied some onto her hand. The smell was deliciously sweet, and she suddenly craved real peaches. Minseo patted her hands and glanced at L. Joe. “You know…” She glanced towards the sea. “You don’t have to keep getting me hand lotion. It’s nice of you, but…I don’t want to burden you like that.”

“Trust me. If you were of any burden to me, I’d drop you like a hot potato,” He commented truthfully.

Minseo frowned slightly with a tilt of her head. She wasn’t too keen o being compared to a vegetable. L. Joe glanced at her ears. She wasn’t wearing them again. “How come you don’t wear them?” “Wear what?” Minseo asked. “The earrings I gave you on Christmas,” He replied. “Oh.” She became quiet.

“I haven’t seen you wear them once since I gave them to you. Do you not like them? Did you want me to exchange them for something else?” L. Joe asked. “No!” Minseo blurted.

L. Joe stared at her curiously. Minseo broke into a chuckle and shook her head. “I like the earrings. I really do. I’m just saving to wear them on a special occasion.”

“Special occasion?” He repeated. “Come on. You can’t expect me to wear something that nice in a place like this.” She held out her hands to prove her point.

L. Joe smirked. “Guess not.”

Minseo smiled back and picked up the rag once again.

L. Joe watched her squeeze water out of the rag and softened. You’ll brighten up this dreary place if you wear the earrings I gave you. Then again, you won’t need the earrings. Your mere presence makes this place a heck of a lot brighter than it used to be.

The seven inmates scrubbed and dusted for a long time. They finished everything right when the sun began to set.

Ricky set the broom against the wall and walked towards the edge of the roof. He stretched his arms over his head and exhaled with a happy smile. “WA! THE VIEW IS NICE!” Ricky exclaimed. “What the heck are you screaming about?” CAP muttered grumpily.

“Come and see the view! It’s amazing!” Ricky motioned for the others to join him. Steadily, they began to approach him. The sea breeze passed by at the right moment, causing the inmates to fill with optimism and peace. Minseo inhaled deeply, and a comforted smile appeared on her face. Besides this place, the island is beautiful. I’ve never lived near the beach before.

“You know, I wouldn’t mind if they made us work up here all the time,” CAP admitted. Minseo silently agreed with him. “This is nice,” Chunji said as he slung his arm around her. “Right, Go Minseo?” He grinned at her. She didn’t push his arm away this time but smiled back instead.

“She smiled, which means she agrees,” Chunji stated. Everyone laughed at his interpretation.

CAP slung his arm around Ricky and raised one arm in the air. “THIS IS AMAZING!”

Changjo gazed out at the blue sea, and his spirits lifted slightly. He hoped to bring his mother to see the beach one day, too. L. Joe slipped his hands into his pockets and took a deep breath. He had to agree with the others. The ocean air was amazing, and he felt a layer of peace come over his indifferent heart. Niel turned his head and gazed at Minseo who was standing beside Chunji. He walked over and stood next to her.

Minseo looked up and locked eyes with Niel. A slow smile spread across his lips. Her lips mimicked his, and she began to smile also. He took a step closer to her, and together, they looked out at the ocean together.

For the first time in a while, the seven inmates felt a sense of hope.

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After dinner, the seven delinquents were locked in the recreation room as usual.

L. Joe was sitting in the armchair with his ankles crossed on another chair and his head lowered with his eyes closed. Changjo and Ricky were in a pool match against Chunji and CAP. Minseo was curled up on the couch with her legs be