A/N: English, Korean, Chinese.

Guys, I am SO sorry. I know the wait has been super long but hopefully I can make it up to you soon! Once APs are over (next Wednesday is my last one!) I can write more.

(Also, Sehun isn't my bias but he's somehow taken over this chapter...)

And I know I sound desperate but I'd like some feedback on how things are progressing, maybe even some preferences as to how they should continue.

The rest of the trip to the dorm is in silence. It's a silence filled with relief and content as you all recuperate from the night's events.

When the van pulls up to the complex, it's with a little gasp that you awake, Sehun shaking you lightly. "Noona, we're home." The fear that choked you for a second disappears as you smile in relief.

"Araso."

It's like you never left. Chatter greets you as the thirteen of you reunite, getting out of the vans. At first, all of you try to squish into the elevator, but Suho and Baekhyun opt to sprint upstairs instead. "Why is the Inkigayo venue so hot?" Baekhyun complains loudly as he does so. "Hyung! I call showering first!"

"Joonmyeon, why don't you just shower at M?" You call out before the elevator doors close, tiptoeing to be heard.

A shout of realization.

The eleven of you crammed into the elevator chuckle.

"So, what's for dinner?" Tao asks.

 "Seriously? Food is the last thing on my mind right now," Kris frowns, pressing even closer to the wall so that you have more space.  "Certain things trigger panic attacks, like being restrained or crowded." He doesn't think the claustrophobia is inclined to hit right now, since you seem happy, but it's probably better to be a little paranoid than to have something like tonight's incident recur.

"Well, Jagi needs to eat," Chanyeol reminds everyone. "That Wiwat guy said she didn't eat lunch, remember?"

"I'm not hungry-" you try. You really aren't, what with all the excitement.

"寶, you have to eat something. No arguments," Luhan asserts.

Taken aback by his uncharacteristically domineering attitude, the other EXO members stay silent. You can't help but smile at the change. "Fine, Bambi ge."

***

After only a little bit of arguing (they all agreed on chicken real quick after you offered to cook), the eleven of you arrange yourselves around the couch area of M's living room. "Suho hyung, are you done?" Tao hammers on the door irritably. "It's already been 35 minutes!"

"Tao, you take an hour to shower," Xiumin reminds him.

"That's besides the point."

"So are you guys scared of letting me cook or something?" You ask, sitting cross-legged on the floor in between Kris' legs.

"Ani," Kyungsoo denies.

"It's because we don't want you to cook when you're so tired," Lay explains sweetly, dimpling.

"Aw, that's considerate of you guys. Come to think of it, though, I doubt you guys even have anything to cook with." You get up too quickly and stagger slightly, almost falling over Kris' legs before he grabs your arm to steady you.

"Noona-"

"Gwenchana," you grin brightly and head off to the kitchen.

The worry in everyone's eyes is replaced by shock as you emit a loud exclamation.

Kris starts, as if going to bolt to the kitchen, but settles down after hearing your query.

"Seriously guys, do none of you cook? Or is there some kind of magic you can do with yoghurt and juice that I don't know about?"

"Kyungsoo cooks. Yeol too," he volunteers. "We can put together some stuff but not much."

"How are you guys surviving on takeout? That's it, I'm cooking for you all tomorrow."

"Do you cook, though?" Xiumin asks skeptically.

"As long as you have a recipe, who can't?" You answer breezily. "Go to the supermarket with me tomorrow, Kris."

"Mm," he agrees casually, lounging again, but then sits up abruptly. "Wait a second. I think we have a schedule."

"Hang on, I'm busy tomorrow," you realize, returning to the living room. "I need to get my exam results and then sign up for the next courses I'm taking."

"That won't take long, will it?" Baekhyun remarks, having just come down from K's dorm.

"No, but then I have to go to all my professors and collect the materials. I won't be able to get a hold of most of them until late afternoon, probably," you frown.

"What about the day after?" Lay asks.

"We leave for China," Xiumin reminds him.

The M members all sigh. "We just came back…"

"How great would it be if Jagi came as our translator?" Chen exclaims.

"Oh, geez, remember that one translator noona who kept grabbing our arms?" Kai shudders. A chorus of groans answer him.

"Jin Ae can't just leave with us, guys," Kyungsoo admonishes them. "She's got college."

"If you can call it college. I doubt they would bat an eye if I asked for a month of leave. Of course, it all depends on how well I know the material I'm going to collect tomorrow. Hopefully, not at all, or else I would know a lot more Russian and Greek than I thought I did."

 "Then just give us a call whenever you're free tomorrow," Kris suggests as Suho emerges, toweling his hair.

"Probably late afternoon, maybe night," you hazard.

"Any time," Luhan reminds you.

"Mm."

***

It turns out you were a lot hungrier than you thought. You've already polished off your portion of chicken (with chopsticks) at a speed faster than any of the others. The thirteen of you are crowded around the coffee table in the middle of the couches. Sehun is eating happily to your right, Kris to your left, too-long legs looking incredibly cramped. You eye the maknae's chicken wing for a moment before sighing, satiated. Carefully, you get up and collapse on the nearest couch, stretching out.

Giggles reach your ears. "Ah, wae," you sigh, cracking an eye open.

"Jagi, you're kind of really short," Chanyeol laughs. "I mean, even stretching out, you fit on that couch."

"Ah, just eat, oppa. Not everyone can be giant." You flap your hand carelessly at him. "What time is it?" you ask, eyes closed again.

"It's 10:40-"

Kris shushes Tao with a finger to his lips. He jerks his head at you. She's asleep already. Everyone hushes.

Do I wake her or let her sleep? I don't know what time she needs to be back the university. Indecisive, he gets up and hovers for a moment before disappearing into the flat. Returning, he carefully arranges a blanket around you before sitting back down to eat.

Luhan frowns and gets up as well. A moment later, he returns with a pillow, which he places gently under your head, lifting it slightly. As his hand holds your head up, you shift and curl into it, reducing the space you occupy to half. A faint smile graces your lips as he lowers your head onto the pillow.  He stifles a chuckle and sits gingerly down next to you, content. The fatigue of the week past finally seems like it's disappearing.

***

", what time is it?" You swear loudly, half-opening your eyes to M's empty living room. You around for your phone, mumbling incoherent curses. "Oh my god it's 6:30, why am I awake?" you moan in despair. A sudden revelation has you backtracking. "Oh, , why did I sleep until now? I need to get back to campus!"

"Language, 寶, we can't have the kids learning swearwords," Luhan admonishes you as he pads out from the kitchen with a glass of water. "Drink."

"Caffeine…" you groan, batting it away weakly.

He grabs your hand and sternly places the glass in it. Unwillingly, you lift it to your lips and drink. "What time do you need to get back? I was going to wake you last night but I guess I fell asleep too."

"I told the dean I would go check the results at 8. I need to shower and change. Ugh, I feel gross." You wrinkle your nose at yourself. "I'll just leave now and hopefully make it on time."

"Mm, I'm going to sleep some more. Remember to text us when you're free!" he calls, already heading towards his bedroom.

"Will do. Annyeong!" You close the door and press the button for the elevator. It arrives moments later.

"Oh, noona! I didn't know you were still here."

The unexpected voice startles you. You look up. It takes your sleep-addled brain a while, but you finally recognize Sehun as the other occupant of the elevator. The way he's dressed today made your eyes pass right over him. Washed-out jeans with ragged cuffs. Worn sneakers. A white tee. A low-key snapback. And the finishing touch: a black hoodie.

You stare, astonished at your own brilliance.

He guess at your train of thought and smiles. "I dress like this whenever I go out, now. How do I look?"

"Absolutely normal," you pronounce fervently. "If only your hyung-deul would listen to me too," you gripe.

"I thought you already went back to the university last night though," he says, puzzled.

"Blame your hyung-deul," you grumble. "I'm going to be late. Anyway, where are you going so early in the morning?"

"I was in the mood for some boba, so…" he admits sheepishly.

"You seem like you're always in the mood for boba. I'm not judging, though. I'm always up for some chai. "

***

The iced, milky chai tastes even better than usual, maybe because you're in such a good mood.

"Come on, noona. Our schedule doesn't start for another few hours. I'll walk you there." He heads in the direction of Seoul University, slurping on his drink.

"Are you insane? College campus-"

He cuts you off with a bright grin, cheek stuffed with boba. "It's still early. If I'm wrong… I'll trust you, noona."

Your shoulders slump as you follow.

***

"Noona, have you ever thought of working in the entertainment industry?" Sehun asks, out of the blue.

"No," you answer immediately.

"Why not?"

"Family. Privacy."

"Oh. Okay."

Speaking of family… I haven't called Mom and Dad since before that Weekly Idol fiasco. But… it's strange that they haven't contacted me.

***

Before long, you arrive at the gates to campus. There are already college students walking around.

"It's only 7:10, you should go back to the dorm and sleep some more."

He looks a little wistful. "Can I stay with you for a little bit, noona?"

"Are you kidding me? I know the clothes thing is working but that doesn't mean you should just drop all precautions-"

"Please?" He holds both hands up by his face. He's still holding the boba, and the ridiculous but adorable sight has you giving in.

"Fine."

***

Nobody is up yet in your dorm. The earliest class begins at 9, though, and breakfast is at 8:30. People will probably be getting up soon.

You unlock the door to your room and usher him in, shushing him with a finger to your lips. "Shh. Stay right here and don't make a sound. You can turn on the lights if you want." You try and think of something for him to do. Heading over to your laptop, you lift the lid and input the password, connecting the charger as you do so. You haven't used it in a week. "Here, you can use it. I'll be right back after I shower. Araso?"

"Araso, noona."

You grab your towel, toiletries, and a couple of items of clothing before leaving, shooting him a warning glance on the way out.

As Sehun sits down at the computer, a dialog box pops up. "Oh?" On it is an envelope and a red notification symbol. Wow, she has a lot of new messages.

***

"I saw the lights on in the American's room. I guess she's back now," a snide voice comments loudly in the bathroom. You finish toweling your hair in the stall and start to dress.

"I wonder where she went last night. Probably up to no good," comes the sneering reply. "Don't you hate that kind of girl? She makes our university look bad."

You hold back a chuckle before strolling out. "Oh, annyeong!" Fluttering your fingers cheerfully at the two girls primping in front of the mirror, you leave.

"Sehun-ah," you say as you open the door to your room. "Yah, kid, what are you doing?" You laugh, seeing him passed out on the table.

"Oh, noona-" he yawns, shooting up.

"What is that, Sehun?" you ask, curious.

"Ah, fancafe," he answers sheepishly.

"Sehun-ah! Are you eating and sleeping well? Don't overwork yourself! Saranghae~" you read. "Oh geez. 'From a noona fan'?"

Sehun flushes. "Mm…"

"Wait, there's one about me," you frown. "There." You read, fascinated. "Sehun-oppa, who was that girl on Weekly Idol? Is she really a trainee? From Taehui." You roll your eyes. "Is it really that important? I appeared for all of five minutes."

"But noona-"

"Never mind, it's only been a couple of days. It'll blow over, right? Anyway, what do you want to do? Do you want to tempt fate and walk to the office with me?" You grin, mischievous.