Shin Hye wasn’t feeling great. She was running on caffeine and little sleep, trying to survive the long filming hours. If it weren’t for the great cast and crew, she would have collapsed by now. She was barely able to get these two hours free, which she begged her manager to give her. She was willing to forego sleep just so she can feel a little normal again.

She was currently in a coffee shop to meet a friend who she hasn’t seen in months. More than sleep, she needed a time out. Things have been getting hot and heavy in the drama; which in turn made it all topsy-turvy in the personal feelings department – she was starting to get all sorts of mixed signals from her head and her heart. She needed a distraction.

‘Shin Hye!’

She turned to the entrance and saw Go Ara approaching her table with a big smile on her face. ‘ARA!’ She was almost in tears as she stood up and gave her friend a long hug.

‘I was surprised you called. You’re not filming today?’ Ara asked her as she took a seat.

‘I am, but I’m not needed for the next four hours. I’m glad you don’t have filming today! I ordered your favorite.’ she told her friend excitedly, pointing to a cup of coffee on the table.

‘Yeah, our schedule isn’t as hectic because our scripts come earlier. How are you? You don’t look too good. Are you okay?’ Ara reached over to touch Shin Hye’s forehead and cheeks.

‘I know. I haven’t been sleeping well. But I can still manage,’ she replied wearily.

‘Something’s bothering you,’ Ara gave Shin Hye a curious look.

‘I’m just tired…’

‘Anya, something is definitely bothering you,’ Ara cut Shin Hye off. ‘If you’re just tired, you’d be sleeping right now. But you called me, which means something is up. Spill it.’ She took her coffee cup and sipped, while she leaned back on her chair.

Shin Hye smiled. They’ve known each other for a long time now and Ara is one of her closest friends and confidantes. Since they were born in the same month and year, they share so many similarities in personality. So Ara almost always knew how she was feeling. Shin Hye realized she could never hide anything from her.

She sighed. ‘I don’t know, something feels off. Uhm…’ she hesitated, ‘what do you think of Lee Min Ho?’

Ara put her cup down as her eyes widened, ‘DAEBAK.’

Shin Hye panicked. ‘I haven’t said anything yet!’

Ara grinned, ‘I knew it. Called it!’

‘What are you talking about? I haven’t said anything yet!’

She ignored her. ‘I was talking to Ha Neul yesterday…’

This time, Shin Hye cut Ara off. ‘You talked to Kang Ha Neul?’

‘Yeah, I called him yesterday to ask how filming was going. I figured you were busy so I just called him to ask about you,’ Ara excitedly recounted, ‘anyway, as I was saying… he told me something interesting yesterday.’

‘What?’ Shin Hye was nervous.

‘He said that something weird is going on between you and Lee Min Ho,’ Ara ended with a perky smile.

‘Huh? I don’t—what does that mean?’ Shin Hye noted: Talk to Kang Ha Neul the brat.

‘I didn’t know what he was talking about at first, either. So I asked him and he said… uh,' Ara tried to recall their conversation. 'You know how you were filming that party? I’m not so sure what party it was. Are there lots of parties in your drama?’

‘Not really…’ Shin Hye knew right away what party she was talking about. Her heart started pounding.

‘Chincha? Anyway, he told me that you had this scene where the spotlight was on you and Lee Min Ho. Ha Neul said that the whole set was eerily quiet, and everyone was just staring at you two. He said you projected this... tense vibe. And he definitely felt like something was going on between you two. Like, beyond the drama.’

Shin Hye’s eyes widened. She remembered exactly what happened at that shoot.

After Kang PD showed them how they were going to act the scene out, Shin Hye and Min Ho looked at each other, waiting for some sort of reaction. She was extremely nervous because even as the crew was getting ready, all eyes were already on them. It was the first time the other actors were going to see them act out a sweet scene. She felt it added extra pressure. It