"Don't you have a schedule, Kris?" you question him after a while.

"No," he lies.

The lie flies right over your head, something that would never happen, normally. "That's good. Because I really hate the idea of being alone right now."

"You have Wiwat," he points out.

"It's not the same," you frown. "He's a friend, but I've only known him for a week."

Gratified, Kris smiles slightly. "Well, I'm here now."

"Yeah. But… how did you know where I was?"

"You called, earlier. I called back, and Wiwat picked up," Kris answers. "He told me to come."

"Oh."

***

"Annyeong, kids~ Where's… Luhan? No, Kris." Ryeowook asks as the 11 boys come into the studio.

"He has another schedule," Luhan lies casually.

"Is Kris hyung really not coming?" Chen asks Suho quietly as the commercials play before the broadcast.

"I guess not," Suho frowns. "He did say it was an emergency."

I wonder what it is… is 寶 alright? Luhan thinks, worried.

***

"You're leaving to China tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, we are."

"For how long?"

"A week."

You frown slightly, unbeknownst to yourself. What will you do for a week? You look at your hands. You won't be able to practice Muay Thai for at least a week, until they heal.

The radio in the café begins to broadcast the next program.

"Annyeonghaseyo, this is DJ Ryeowook, and you're listening to KBS Sukira!" a bright voice says.

Kris blanches. Of all the channels…

You don't miss his reaction. "Kris…"

"Our guests today are the one and only EXO!" Cheers.

"Kris!" you shoot up. "Yah!"

Kris flinches as several people look over.

"I'm grateful that you came to drag me out of my slump, but you could have told me," you scold, towing him out of the café as the commercial break begins.

"Jewel-"

You drag him to the nearest taxi and attempt to push him in. He sighs and pulls you in also.

"The KBS building, please," he directs the driver.

"Kris, what are you doing?" you demand, sitting up.

"I can't leave you alone," he asserts. "So I'm bringing you with me."

"Are you insane, Kris? Think about it!"

"You're not going to be alone, Jewel. Not tonight."

"Kris…"

"We'll just have to avoid being seen."

"And it's that easy?"

***

It really isn't that easy. At first, the taxi attempts to pull up outside the KBS building, but the masses of people waiting there to catch a glimpse of EXO are too intimidating.

"Go around the back, please," Kris says as he ducks out of sight and dials his manager. "Hyung, can you come down and let me in through the employee entrance?" He holds his phone away from his ear, wincing slightly. "Mianhaeyo, hyung."

Pulling out his wallet, he pays for the taxi fare as the vehicle draws up to the curb. "Come on."

The two of you duck out of the car and into the shadows near the employee entrance. Fortunately, before long, the door opens. You hide behind Kris.

"Kris, where were you?" his manager hisses. "You know if any bad publicity surfaces, it's on me, right?"

"I know, hyung. I'll explain later. For now, please just trust me. Jin Ae won't cause any trouble, I promise."

The manager didn't notice you before, but upon seeing you, he's shocked. It's obvious he hadn't expected to see you again.

"You brought her?! Kris, the higher-ups ordered me to scout her, you know."

Aish, S.M. too?

"They did? But hyung, not today, she's in no state to be scouted," Kris warns.

"Araso, I'll let it go this time and pretend I never saw her. Hopefully word doesn't get out."

"It won't-"

The manager waves away his assurances tiredly. "Just go up now, I think they're still going around for introductions. But if anyone sees her…"

"Araso, hyung."

***

Xiumin has just finished introducing himself when the two of you reach the studio. Before Luhan can start his own introduction, Chen accidentally provokes several heart attacks.

"Ah! It's Kris hyung and J-" Kyungsoo slaps a hand over Chen's mouth before he can bring doom upon you all.

"Sit here, Jewel." Kris gestures at the empty couch outside of the recording area, behind the sound technicians, as Ryeowook watches through the glass. "We'll have a couple of commercial breaks, be done in an hour and then head back to the dorm, okay?"

"Mm."

Quietly, Kris enters the recording studio just as it's his turn. He bends down to the nearest mic, Tao's. "Annyeonghaseyo, I'm the leader of EXO-M, the charismatic Kris."

After some compliments from Ryeowook in regards to new hairstyles and whatnot, the conversation turns to Weekly Idol.

"Ah, look at all these texts coming in! 'Kris oppa, why were you late?' Kim Jiyoon."

"I had to discuss something with our manager," Kris lies smoothly.

 "Ah, I see. But what are these? 'Oppa-deul, who was that girl on Weekly Idol?' Lee Yoojin. 'Who is the Mona Lisa?' Kim Sora. Guys, what is the word about the Mona Lisa? No, wait- first, who would like to explain to the listeners who have no heard about the Mona Lisa yet? Personally, I don't know much about it," Ryeowook prompts.

Silence for a split second too long.

"Uh, I'll explain," Lay volunteers, as if bewildered to hear himself speaking. "The Mona Lisa is a woman who appeared briefly on last week's episode of Weekly Idol."

"And what is so special about this woman? Why has she been dubbed the Mona Lisa?" While questioning his hoobae, Ryeowook looks it up himself. What he finds has him squinting toward the glass dividing the on-air part of the studio from the rest. Wait a second.

"Uh, the Mona Lisa has been deemed an ulzzang by the online community," Xiumin picks up cautiously.

"She had great variety skills," Baekhyun adds.

"So, back to the question at hand. Who is this woman? She's not an S.M. trainee, for sure. Do you know her? " Ryeowook asks, even as he confirms what he suspects. He knows better than to potentially sabotage his hoobaes, though. He knows of the scandals it could cause.

"Aniyo," Kyungsoo denies firmly.

***

Sitting alone and looking in on the proceedings has somewhat undid the work Kris did earlier to cheer you up. In fact, you're going a little stir-crazy. Your phone has run out of battery and all you can do is sit quietly. You can't even hear what's going on. All you can do is think about your parents. Slipping your hood over your head, you rest your head in your hands and stare blankly at the ground.

***

"And with that, we will go to commercials," Ryeowook wraps up the small talk segment. The studio goes off air. "Guys, just try to tell me that's not the Mona Lisa sitting right there," he demands. "What are you doing?"

"She's just a normal college student," Kris says. "A friend from New York City."

"Why was she on Weekly Idol, then?"

"It was a misunderstanding," Luhan answers.

Ryeowook narrows his eyes. "Introduce me?" He asks. She's a rather intriguing specimen.

"Um, okay, hyung. She's gone through a lot today, though," Kris agrees dubiously. "Please don't stress her out." Getting up and opening the door to the outside, he beckons you in. Tired, you comply.

Gasps all around.

Why are noona's eyes so red? Sehun thinks.

"Yah, jagiya, gwenchana?" Chanyeol asks, too alarmed to remember he wasn't supposed to call you that.

"What did I just hear?" Ryeowook asks in shock.

"Chanyeol!" Baekhyun scolds.

"It's a nickname we have for her, hyung. Her name in Chinese means jagi in Korean," Suho explains, wincing.

"I see…" The older man nods doubtfully.

Kris wraps his arm around you and directs your gaze toward his sunbae. "Jewel, this is Kim Ryeowook."

"Annyeonghaseyo, Ryeowook-ssi," you murmur, bowing. "Jin Ae-ibnida."

"Ryeowook hyung is a member of Super Junior," Kris informs you.

"Oh, with Henry," you remember.

"Mm, with Henry."

"So you're the mysterious Mona Lisa that the Internet has been abuzz with news about, hm?" Ryeowook asks curiously. At the look on your face (you're in no kind of state to deal with probing questions right now), he backtracks. "Never mind." He hesitates. "Would you like to sit in here with us, Jin Ae-ssi?" he invites. "You look a little lonely out there."

"I'm not sure that's a good idea-" you begin, but Kris cuts you off.

"She would love to." He shoots you a look before you can argue. "I was getting awfully worried about you. Come sit with me, just for my peace of mind. Hm?"

Luhan, Lay, and Tao make various noises of affirmation.

Hesitating, you agree too, nodding.

"This is all on live stream video, though."