It was early in the morning. The sun hasn't even risen yet, but I feel a pair of hands shake me awake. It was most likely Rena. She liked staying up late on weekends watching movies and surfing the internet. Even on school nights, she's able to stay up later than me, yet wake up earlier as well. I have no idea how it works for her because it's difficult both ways for me. I stir and turn, but her strength was much more than mine. I sat up with my head still dangling and eyes half-closed. I was able to peek at the clock and it read 3:36 AM. 3 hours ago, I slept just to me awaken again.

"Rena, what is it? Let me sleep." I mumbled falling back on my pillow. She gave up cause she didn't try sitting me up this time.

All she said was, "I'm sure this will wake you up."

"What?" I plainly stated.

"You met with Mark yesterday that's why you didn't tell me where you were going."

Still laying down, my eyes opened to look at Rena. Her face glued onto the shining screem of her laptop. "H-how did you know?"

"Kate, there's a picture of you both right here. There's a rumor circulating that he's cheating on his girlfriend Cecilia Woo with you." Rena pointed at the screen and showed me.

At that second, I thought of Mark. He must be in misery now. His relationship is going to end because of me. I could careless at the moment that I was spotted. My image didn't matter because either way, I'll be forgotten by the media in the years to come, but Mark won't. He'll be labled as a cheater due to this false statement all because I wasn't careful. His girlfriend would have to suffer questions and so will he. They're the ones who'll have it just a tad bit worse because they are known. I'm not screwed, but I'll be known as the screwer. Honestly, I am afraid to face it and have a bad name, but for Mark..........I wouldn't mind. If it is to save what's most precious to him, I'll do all that I can to help him even if I gain nothing.

"Rena, you sure? Let me take a closer look." There is no doubt that it isn't me. The picture showed our faces clearly. I'm doomed. "What now?"

My roommate gave me a apologetic look. "Let them figure it out. The company will have a way with clearing this."

My head fell into my hands as I burst with self-disappointment, "No, Rena. It's all my fault that it became like this. Only if I had declined meeting him this wouldn't be. God dammit!" I slammed my fists into my blanket, letting my head fall back hard into the pillow, making it puff.

"Mark, I already released the news that you and that girl are only friends, but it's going to take more than that to persuade the angry fans and the media." JYP sat in his office with his hands folded together.

Mark was quiet simply because he had nothing to say. He doesn't know what he could say to make it better. He was going to have to face it regardless if he's ready or not. He got most of the hatred by fans of Cecilia because they entrusted him with her heart. His own fans were also in dismay of the situation. To him, he sensed that everything has slowly become corrupt ever since he saw Kate. His heart didn't beat the same and he didn't act the same. Now he's going to face the consequence of trying to fix this lost friendship. Mark predicted all the worse happenings, but this wasn't one. He didn't think they'd be in a scandal. The worst he thought was having Kate slap him across the face for never putting the effort to be friends like normal.

"I must meet Kate to talk to her through this." Mark demanded.

JYP shook his head, "You will only make the problem bigger. Give it time. She's not the first person you need to talk to right now."

"But she's my friend-"

Cutting in, JYP stated, "A friend will understand, but a girlfriend won't." It struck Mark.

It then registered to Mark that he needed to see Cecilia since he's sure that the news already made it to her. Surprisingly, he didn't know why meeting with her didn't cross his mind the first time when he discovered the scandal. He took it that he was too overwhelmed to have thought of meeting her first.

"Sorry, I need to go see Cecilia right now." Mark excused himself from JYP and left to Cecilia's dorm.

Mark ran and jogged. He sped his way to her. It's been one whole day since the rumor broke out and he hasn't even cleared it with her. That was bad on his part and he felt terrible for being so irresponsible. Once he found himself in front of Cecilia's door, it only took him once knock until the door opened. He saw the rest of Got7 coming out of the room. He was clueless to why they were there, but they only gave him a friendly half-smile and walked passed him as they waved to the girls. After the departure of the boys, the girl members dispersed to there room because they knwe the two love birds needed time alone. Cecilia welcomed Mark into her home. He walked in unable to start what he wanted to talk about. He bit his lips and away the dryness due to the nervousness he was feeling. His girlfriend sat across of him on the opposite couch.

"Why-why were the guys here earlier?" He thought it'd be better to slowly get into the subject.

Totally avoiding the question, Cecilia had a faded smile on. "They're good friends, Mark."

He gave her an odd look, "What went on?"

"They were here to help you. They were here to tell me to not be angry at you because you have a good reason, you always have good reasons." She sighed, "So, I'm here to listen to you." Cecilia was as calm as a pure, white snow flake that would fall in the winter.

Mark was in disbelief with her reaction. "Can you just admit that you are upset and hate me right now?" His eyes were filled with guilt and trembling tears.

"Mark, how could I be upset or hate you when I don't even know the truth? I have to hear it from you before I can determine what I'm actually feeling."

He made his way to her, knelt down, and bowed to the floor. Not once did he look up.

"I know, Mark." She said. "I know she's that friend you've longed for."

Mark lifted his head a bit from the floor, but didn't look up. "How do you know?"

"The guys told me she's a friend from home so I don''t need to worry about anything."

Feeling a weight of relief be lifted, he wrapped his arms around Cecilia's legs. He sniffed back tears and Cecilia patted his back, bringing him up to sit next to her. "Hey, why are you crying?" She wiped away his tears and gave give a warm, small smile. "Everything's fine."

"How could you be so trusting of me?" The question was one that he's been wanting to ask.

"Because you've never lied to me." The glow on her face was comforting. "This is only to test our love for each other."

Mark stared at her beauty in personality and character. It was definitely her highlight. Her appearance was of a goddess, but this situation reminded him the true reason he decided to ask her to be official with him. "I'm thankful you didn't misunderstand. Do you know how terrified I was to feel that I was going to lose you?"

"But you didn't lose me and for as long as we're willing to not let anything fail us, we will never lose one another."

Mark leaned in and captured her lips. She responded giving a little of her own force. Cecilia felt lucky, but Mark felt the luckiest.

 I was intimidated to walk around campus because I didn't want anyone to talk bad about me, but the university students were mature about it. Well, most were. I've walked pass some girls who glared, but they didn't say anything aside from saying 'is that her?'  Going around campus was safe, but stepping out of it was what I was more worried about. What if I ran into some fans who supposedly hate me? I wouldn't know where to hide my face, but I knew I didn't need to hide. It'll only give off the impression that I am guilty of being a home-wrecker when really, I'm not.

I made my way to my Korean history and Korean language class. They were down the hall from each other so they walk wasn't too bad. When Korean class was over, I was called into the main office building. I didn't have a clue what it was for, but I attended.

"Kate, mind if I join you?" It was Meng with his enlightening smile.

"Hi, sure." We both walked together to the office.

"Why are you heading this way?"

"I have to go to the main office for something. I'm not very sure myself."

We were both happy that our classes of the day were over. It gave us time to mingle and do nothing. Meng also breifly asked me about the recent scandal with the idol star which I told him was a big misunderstanding. He teased about me becoming famous. As we got to the building, he opened the door for me and walked in after. I met with the front counter lady and she told me someone was here to see me. She took Meng and I to one of the back rooms. As we entered, there was a young lady around my age sitting at the table with a cup of water in her hand. Seeing us, she put the cup down and walked over to us. She smiled widely and bowed. Meng and I hesitated, but bowed in politeness.

"Hello, you must be Kate Tran, right? It's nice to finally meet you." She then looked to Meng, "And you are?"

"Meng Hong. Nice to meet you."

I smiled and bowed to her once again, "I apologize, but may I ask who you are?" I tried my best to speak Korean.

"If it's better for us to communicate, we can just speak English." Again, her angelic smile was revealed. "I'm Cecilia Woo."

That name sounded like it was been read to me before. I couldn't pinpoint where I've heard it, but it was familiar.

"I'm Mark's girlfriend, Cecilia."

It made sense why I kept thinking of Mark when she stated her name. She was his girlfriend. She was the idol who's dating him. She's the girl from the same company as him. For some reason, it hit me hard in the chest. I also forgot that Meng was standing beside me.

"I apologize for not recognizing you. Please, forgive me. It's a pleasure to meet you." She was someone of higher status that I suddenly felt embarassed to not have known who she was. Korea would be able to tell she was a celebrity right off the bat, but to my stupidity, I didn't.

She shook her head indicating she was alright with it. Her English was perfect, almost as if she wasn't even a native Korean. Her beauty was also breathtaking. I could see why Mark fell for her. Nonetheless, she was a down to earth, sweetheart.

"I'm sorry to have caused trouble to you and Mark."

"Don't be sorry. Mark already clarified that it's not true." She held onto my hand to ease away my worry. "Let's have coffee together and we all can talk. I heard you're Mark's hometown friend. I'd love to be-friend you as well. Meng can come along too."

Somehow, Meng and I ended up strolling alongside Cecilia all the way to a coffee shop that was near the company. She apologetically said that she wanted to take us far from the city and media just so we all can have more of a privacy. She told us that staying near the company was much safer because media never really came around the area unless they needed to for some juicy scoops. Regardless, she did give us a warning just incase. Partially covered up, she had a hat and sunglasses. Meng and I followed right behind. Having him here made me feel much more relax.

TOMS & TOMS was the name of the place. Cecilia was right, it was very close to JYP. From the window, you could see the big blue letters. We sipped on our iced teas and chatted about basically everything that related to Mark since Cecilia asked about our friendship. From time to time, I added Meng into the conversation and he would share about his travels from Taiwan as an exchange student. I didn't want to be too directed towards Mark. After all, we weren't even friends anymore. We were just individuals who know one another.

"You should stop by the company sometimes." Cecilia suggested.

"There's really no need. I don't want to be a bother."

"I think Mark would love to have you. Everyone at the company would. It's always nice to see a new friend."

Her friendly character was definitely JYP style. Everyone at the company was always welcoming and kind. I recall Yerin and Jimin. They were my first friends here in Korea. "How's Jimin and Yerin?" I asked out of curiosity.

"Oh 15&? You know them?! How great! They've excelled and are doing really well."

I went into telling her that I had visited once and that's how I came to know the girls and the GOT7 boys. She was excited to find out because she encouraged me more to stop by since I have made friends with a couple. She even encouraged Meng too. Of course, what she doesn't know is that Mark and I aren't friends anymore. Mark knows too since I did confirm it with him that day we talked. He didn't say anything against it nor did he support my statement, but still, in my book of friends, he was off the list. It was much safer that way. It was safer for my heart.

As the conversation between Meng, Cecilia, and I continued, we heard the doorbells of the shop jingle. There were many male voices clattering together.

Mark, the Got7 crew, and the 5 Live members walked in like a mob talking amongst themselves. Cecilia spotted them and waved them over. Kate and Meng turned to see who were part of the loud crowd. Meng remembered a couple faces from the banquet and Kate remembered as well, but there was one person who stood out. Mark.

The clueless ones walked over to greet, but the ones who knew the history between Mark and Kate held back a bit.

Meng bowed to show respect and they all acknowledged him. Kate did the same, but she addressed the ones she was familiar with by their names. Mark was astonished at why Kate and Meng was doing here especially with Cecilia. To clear the confusion, Cecilia explained that she had visited the campus and asked for the two to join her for coffee. Again, it was an unexpected meet and Mark didn't know how to take it. With Meng sitting beside her made him feel like he was betrayed. He saw Meng as his replacement. He was no longer a good friend to Kate, but Meng was.

"It's getting late. Meng and I should take our leave now." Kate informed the crowd, about to get up from her seat, but a voice stopped her.

"You both should have dinner with us first." Mark actually spoke. Something made him want to stop her and Meng from leaving.

"It's fine-"

Meng grabbed Kate's wrist, "Let's stay. You can reunite with your friends. When will an opportunity like this happen again?" He gave her a reassuring smile that it was fine with him if they stayed.

Mark's eyes zoomed in on Meng's hold. Kate sat back down and agreed to stay. Amongst the GOT7 guys, they were honored to be recognized as friends even though during Kate's last visit, they all didn't really bond. Plus, they didn't know how to treat her after knowing the history bewteen her and Mark. They had nothing against her, but since their older friend left things unsettled, they didn't want to go about it wrong. They still saw her as a good person though.

Once food was on the table, the talking didn't necessarily stop. Ironically, Mark and Cecilia sat together across Meng and Kate. The two outsiders didn't feel the awkwardness but Mark and Kate did, but they knew that had to guilt a bridge over it. The only way to get over it to endure. Meng naturally scopped a spoonful of rice with a piece of bulgogi dipped in the spicy sauce and lifted it to Kate. He held it to and she accepted his offer. Mark watched their interaction and felt his blod pressure act up. He grabbed a lettuce wrap and added a piece bulgogi. He directed Cecilia's face towards him. He saw that Meng and Kate were happily talking so he purposely cleared his throat to gain attention. When he successfully did, he fed Cecilia. Kate looked away carelessly and no one seemed to care.

"Thank you for the meal tonight. It was nice being out with you all." Meng somehow got closer with the boys since he was talkative. The only person who he didn't really engage with was Mark since he always was bust talking tohis girlfriend. After saying goodbye, they all parted ways. To the rest of the crew, they were satisfied because of the meal. Mark was bothered, but it didn't really come through for the others.

On the way back to campus, Meng casually swung his arm over my shoulder. "You have some cool friends. I'm quite jealous."

"You know, they aren't really friends. I've only known them for a week the last time I came which was like around 3 years ago."

"Well, still. They're cool. I can't believe they're actually idols."

I laughed at how childish Meng sounded. I was thankful he was beside me the whole night. Because of him, I was able to not focus so much on Mark.

"Thank you, Meng." I suddenly felt grateful. "Thanks for accompanying me. Sorry that I dragged you along."

He grinned, "I like being with you. I feel much more included."

Throughout the walk and bus ride to campus, he asked me about Mark. I told him Mark was an old friend, someone I knew from long ago since we were from the same hometown. It felt like I traveled back in time as I told Meng of Mark and my memories.

"Mark must be a good friend then."

"Use to."

"What happened?"

"Nothing happened, that's why." I left the hidden meaning lingering. I didn't feel like telling any further and Meng understood that because he didn't push for more.

"I hope I can become a close friend too." He whispered.

As more days came by, Meng was able to bring the best out of Kate. They've become close friends to the point that they let each other in on their stress, happiness, and sadness. They even joke around like they've been the best of friends for years. It was refreshing for Kate to be reminded how it was to have a guy-friend around who understood her and got along well with her. The things they did though, made her think of her old memories, but she always found a wayto not dangle on them. Her memories no longer bothered her as much as it did before. Meng, on the other hand, felt like he was the most fortunate to have found friendship in someone like Kate.