Soojung was seven when she witnessed Taemin’s first kiss.

 

It was her classmate, Bae Sooji, who Taemin had liked for a while. The two were sitting on the swings in the school playground and Soojung came running in just as Taemin leaned over and pecked her on the lips.

 

Soojung was not good at assessing situations. “Yah, Lee Taemin!” she yells and runs straight into him, knocking him off the swing and on to the ground. “Jonginnie and me are looking for you…”

 

“Soojung,” Taemin hisses, a little mad. Sooji had turned red and stood up abruptly from the swing. “Can you leave us alone, please…”

 

Soojung blinks. “What? Why?” She scrambles to her feet. “I thought you wanted to play…”

 

“It’s okay, Taemin-oppa,” Sooji cuts in, fidgeting and trying to smile. “I’d best be going anyway. I’ll see you tomorrow,” she says before running off. 

 

Taemin watches her go, then biffs Soojung on the shoulder. “Yah, Soojung, why did you have to come in at that moment? I just kissed her!”

 

Soojung furrows her eyebrows. “Um. Sorry? I don’t get it, though?”

 

Taemin rolls his eyes. “Well, I just kissed her. If she liked me, she could kiss me back. But you came in, so she didn’t. So it wasn’t special anymore. Do you get it?”

 

“Why is it not special when I come in? That’s not fair,” Soojung says. “I thought I was your best friend.”

 

“You are, but…”

 

“Fine, I’ll make it up to you.” Soojung leans over and plants a kiss on Taemin’s lips herself.

 

Taemin squawks and almost falls backwards. “Soojung! Why’d you do that?”

 

“Well, you said I made your first kiss not special,” Soojung says, “so I gave you your second kiss, which is special because it came from me!”

 

Taemin narrows his eyes. “But I don’t want to be kissed by you… You kiss the people you like like, Soojung-ah, so it means absolutely nothing coming from you!”

 

Soojung’s eyes widen. “Ewwwww!! Really?” She gags. “Then you really have to treasure that kiss because it won’t come a second time!”

 

“Soojung, do you understand anything…”

 

“EEWWW, I SAW THAT! YOU TWO KISSED!”

 

And of course Jongin had to see what happened.

 

 

 

*

 

 

 

Soojung is seventeen when she does kiss Taemin a second time. This time, Taemin kisses her first.

 

It was nothing big. They were snuggled up together on Taemin’s couch, watching TV and eating popsicles. Upon finishing hers, Soojung glances at Taemin just to see that he was looking at her with a small smile on his face. She gives him a small, quizzical smile back, and he leans in a little closer and kisses her on the lips, just a short, soft pressure.

 

Soojung blinks. “What was that for?”

 

Taemin grins. “Do you remember our first kiss?”

 

“Oh, God, yes.” Soojung rolls her eyes. “I was so clueless. And you told me it meant absolutely nothing!”

 

Taemin laughs. “Yeah. And you said I should treasure it because it would never come a second time.”

 

Soojung smiles, remembering. 

 

“So… I just kissed you again, now when it does mean something.”

 

Soojung stares. Then she leans forward and returns the kiss, saying, “Well, there’s your second time.”

 

 

 

 

 

They exchange kisses from time to time after that, just innocent pecks on the cheek and forehead and lips. Soojung has never kissed anyone in the time between her first kiss and her second, and she didn’t expect to want to kiss at all. But kissing Taemin was okay. Actually, it was nice. Regardless of her lack of experience, it was warm and friendly and familiar. And it wasn’t long before it became habitual, a small affectionate gesture thrown around every once in a while.

 

Soojung didn’t think too much of it, didn’t think of it as weird, nothing more than just another step in their relationship. So when she drops by the dance studio after practice hours, she casually walks in, hugs Taemin and pecks him on the lips in front of Jongin and Sehun.

 

She glances in their direction and they both sport identical slack-jawed expressions on their faces. “What?”

 

Jongin crinkles his nose. “That looks almost uous.” He gets a hard punch on the shoulder.

 

Sehun’s expression morphs into one that Soojung can’t decipher, and he sneaks a glance at Jongin when he thinks Soojung isn’t looking. Soojung decides to overlook that and turns back to Taemin. “Are we getting fro-yo?”

 

Taemin smiles and puts an arm around her shoulders. “Yeah, let’s go.”

 

“Hyung, she’s just with you for free food,” Sehun remarks and Soojung turns around to hit him, but Taemin pulls her back and laughs. 

 

 

 

*

 

 

 

Jinri was the one to spill the beans - long-distance - to Jiyoung and Sohyun about Taemin and Soojung’s relationship. Thus Soojung found herself dragged into a session of girl-talk with the two in Jinri’s room, over Skype.

 

“Soojung, I’m so happy for you!” Sohyun squawks the second they’re connected.

 

“Hi to you to, Sohyun-ah,” Soojung says, hugging Jinri’s Rilakkuma plushie closer to her chest.

 

“We told you so,” Sohyun smirks, and Soojung sighs. Her girl friends have been teasing her about both Taemin and Jongin since they all first became friends. “I placed my bets on Taemin since we were in eighth grade.”

 

“I placed mine on Jongin, and you let me down,” Jiyoung says, pouting. 

 

Soojung hits the webcam with the Rilakkuma and Jinri yells at her. “I hate you guys.”

 

“So how is it,” Jiyoung says, and Soojung can see her ripping into a packet of Pocky.

 

Soojung shrugs. “I don’t know, what do you want me to say about it? We go on dates… he buys me food… he takes me home… you know. Nothing wow.”

 

“How did you come to realize that you liked him?” Sohyun asks, staring intently at Soojung through the screen with her almond-shaped eyes.

 

“Um…” Soojung thinks for a bit. “Well. We went to Homecoming together, and we sort of had a moment after? Not a physical moment, Kwon Sohyun — just, y’know, with him leaving soon and all, we talked about how we’ll really miss each other. And then, he asked me out after that. So I just… you know… Sohyun, you don’t have to look so unsatisfied with my explanation. Were you expecting me to burst into enthusiastic poetry the way Jinri would?” Jinri socked her in the arm and Soojung yelped.

 

Sohyun laughs, but her eyes look thoughtful. “Yeah, no. No, I was just thinking… So why did you say yes?”

 

“Uh… for obvious reasons?”

 

“Which is?”

 

“That we’re… best friends? And we don’t have a lot of time left together? And we like each other?”

 

Sohyun hums and nods. “Okay, that’s good.”

 

“Why do I get the feeling you’re a little put out, Miss Number-One-Fan of our relationship,” Soojung quips.

 

“It’s not that, it’s just… Well, maybe it’s just me. But me personally, I only accept when I feel like, intense feelings. A thrill. And the way you talk about how you got together is like. Explaining to me how your haircut went.”

 

“Yeah, but that’s why you go chasing cool oppas, Sohyun,” Soojung points out. “I’m with a guy who I’ve seen in diapers, so obviously I’m not looking for much thrill. And you’ve been my friend long enough to know I talk about everything this way.”

 

“True.” Sohyun sighs. “Still, I was hoping you’d be swept off your feet. Like Jiyoung when she got asked out. You’re so unchanging, Soojung-ah.”

 

“They kiss in public now, though,” Jinri chips in, earning a pinch from Soojung and shrieks from Sohyun and Jiyoung.

 

“What, really?” Jiyoung practically screams. “Like, really kissing?”

 

“No!” Soojung yells. “Just… you know. Pecks. And not that often… Jinri, I hate you.”

 

“That is a big change, for you, Soojung,” Sohyun says. “Aw.”

 

The girls chat more after that, and hours later as Soojung bids them goodbye to walk home before it gets dark, Sohyun and Jiyoung jokingly tell her they’ll supervise Taemin 24/7 if he does end up coming to LA.

 

 

 

 

*

 

 

 

 

Walking around alone in New Jersey is really not that big of a deal for Soojung. She likes to think that she is pretty tough for a girl — though she has to admit she has no idea what she’d do when she does have to face a shady character — and New Jersey is pretty quiet on the whole. It’s just that, starting from when she was younger, her mom and Jongin’s and Taemin’s have always worked something out so that she would always walk with someone, and that habit continued as they grew up and either Jongin or Taemin would walk with her out of habit. And when one of them could, then it was no problem. Soojung didn’t mind waiting, either. But when no one was around, Soojung had no problem taking care of herself.

 

She wished Taemin would just accept that.

 

“Taemin-ah, you’re already late,” Soojung says again as they walk out of school grounds. He had a family function to go to in Manhattan, but he had a mandatory meeting with his dance coach about his college applications and couldn’t skip out. And yet, he was insisting on walking Soojung home. 

 

Taemin frowns, looks up at the sky and then back at Soojung’s face. “It’s getting dark, Soojung. I really don’t think you should be walking home alone—”

 

“Taemin, your aunt left seventeen calls on your phone,” Soojung cuts in. “Come on. You’re already two hours late.”

 

They argue back and forth before Soojung started physically pushing him in the direction of the train station. “Tae, do I have to push you all the way to the station?”

 

Taemin sighed. “Are you sure you’ll be fine?”

“Yes, don’t worry. This is New Jersey, not the Bronx. I’ll be fine, Taemin-ah, don’t worry so much.”

 

Taemin sighs. “You should’ve called Jongin…”

 

“Jongin went home straight away, I’m sure he wouldn’t come all the way back here just to walk me back home.” She gave him another push. “Come on. Go. I’ll be fine.”

 

 

 

 

 

Jongin was sprawled across the sofa eating Doritos and watching TV when the home phone rang. After debating whether or not he was too lazy to pick it up, he finally forced his body off the sofa and approached the phone. “Hello, good eve—”

 

“Kim Jongin, where the hell have you been?? Did you leave your cell phone somewhere?? I’ve been calling and calling…”

 

“Soojung?” Jongin frowns. It barely took a second for him to realize something was wrong; her voice was whispered and frantic, her breathing heavy and uneven. “What’s wrong?”

 

A couple of breaths, then Soojung whispers, “Someone’s following me.”

 

Jongin’s blood runs cold. “Where are you?” he asked, darting to the coat rack and picking up whatever was closest. “Do you know where you are exactly?”

 

“A few blocks away… Washington Street…”

 

“Are you taking the usual route?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Okay, I’m coming, Soojung, walk as fast as you can, okay?” Jongin grabs his keys from the hanger on the wall and stumbles out of the house with his house slippers. “If anything… If anything happens, you remember what Tao-ge taught you?”

 

“Yeah,” Soojung whispers faintly, barely loud enough to hear. Then, “Stay on the phone with me.”

 

“This is the house phone, Soojung-ah, but pretend you’re still on the phone, okay? I’ll be there soon.” Then he was off, braving the winter chill in house slippers and a coat that… seemed to be his sister’s. He was running so fast that he barely felt the cold, but his slippers gradually tore into shreds against the concrete and he eventually kicked them off. Finally, he spotted a slim, hooded figure shuffling down the road in superspeed, and a larger, more suspicious hooded figure a little further away. 

 

The slim figure spotted him, and tore down the road in his direction. Jongin was certain then that it was Soojung. He opened his arms and caught her as she presses her face into his chest, trembling violently. “Hey, it’s okay. You’re okay. I’m here, Soojung-ah, I’m here, you’re okay, let’s go home.” He tries to break apart slightly and finds her staring at their feet. “Soojung?”

 

“You’re barefoot,” she says.

 

“Uh.” Jongin glances at his feet. “I was wearing slippers but they sort of. Got ruined?”

 

Soojung looks up and scans his clothes, illuminated slightly by the street lights. “Are you wearing Jungah-unni’s coat?”

 

Jongin sighs, short and sharp. “Not on purpose. Come on, let’s go.” He grabs her elbow and starts dragging her along, but she resists a little bit. “What’s your problem?”

 

“Aren’t you cold?” Soojung asks, bringing her hands up to her own neck to uncurl her chunky knit scarf, and Jongin grabs her wrist. “I don’t need your scarf, Soojung-ah.”

 

Soojung scoffs, staring pointedly at his wifebeater and basketball shorts, barely covered by his too-small coat. “Don’t be stupid.” Swiftly, before he could say anything else, she wraps the scarf tightly around his neck and looped it once over his head. 

 

They walk home huddled together, and Jongin would oppose to it if it wasn’t for the fact that he was freezing. When they finally reach their houses, Jongin runs to his front door like his life depends on it, and Soojung chases after him. “Jongin, wait!”

 

Jongin’s hands are trembling as he tries to put the right key in the right hole. “Oh, you want your scarf back,” he says through chattering teeth. “Can you just let me get inside my h— ”

 

Soojung puts her gloved hand over his and takes the key from him, easily unlocking and opening the door. Jongin hurtles inside and drapes himself over the nearest heater. 

 

“Jongin, I…” Jongin looks up from the oasis of warmth and looks at her face. She was staring at her feet, biting her lip and looking a little uncertain. “I just wanted to thank you.”

 

“Oh. Well…” This was the first proper conversation they’ve had in a while, and this was an unusual situation. Jongin wasn’t sure what the proper reaction would be. “It’s no big deal, Soojung-ah.”

 

“You ran out barefoot in the wrong coat in winter to — ”

 

“Well, you had a weirdo stalking you,” Jongin said. “Look, it was something that had to be done, okay? Taemin would’ve done the same.” He paused. “Speaking of Taemin, why weren’t you with him?”

 

“Uhm… he had a family thing in the city so I told him to go ahead.”

 

Jongin’s brows furrowed, but then straightened out again. He didn’t push the issue further. “Well, you should go home.”

 

“Uh. Yeah.” Soojung pauses at the door, then turns back around. “Jongin… don’t say anything about this to Taemin, okay?”

 

Jongin frowns. “Um…”

 

“Please,” Soojung whispers. “I… He’d get all overprotective and stuff. I mean, he insisted on walk me home, but I told him not to — ”

 

“Well, maybe he was right to insist, wasn’t he, considering how you ended up?”

 

Soojung flinches at his tone and Jongin bites his tongue. “I mean. Fine. I won’t say anything, but next time use your head.”

 

“I thought I’d be fine,” Soojung says. “These things never happen— ”

 

“These things rarely happen, but they do. Why’d you think one of us always walks with you?”

 

Soojung opens , then closes it, and Jongin rolls his eyes. “You don’t think. Okay. Well, next time, make sure someone walks with you when it’s dark.”

 

“Jongin, uh…” Soojung had never really considered the extent of her two friends caring about her well-being. “Thanks. Really. I. Thank you.”

 

Jongin smiles. “‘Night, Soojung. Close the door, the wind’s getting in.”

 

“Yeah. Sorry. I… I’ll see you tomorrow.”

 

Jongin waits until the door closes before he takes a closer look at his bleeding feet.

 

 

 

*

 

 

 

Being too bold, too outspoken and too brave isn’t always a good combination for a little girl, especially one constantly surrounded by bigger boys. It’s not a bad thing to be tougher than the boys, but boys don’t like when a girl beats them, and when said girl brags about it things just get worse. Such is the case when Soojung and the neighborhood boys had a who-can-hang-upside-down-on-the-monkey-bars competition, and Soojung won consecutively. After crowing obnoxiously over her victory, the biggest neighborhood boy reached out and pulled her hair, surprising her and causing her to fall off the monkey bars.

 

Soojung had instinctively shifted her body so that she landed on her front and not on her head or neck, so she was technically fine except for a few scrapes, but she was so shocked and deflated that tears fell down her eyes. 

 

“Aww, little Soojungie is not so tough anymore now, is she?” The boys all crowd around her, smirking, and Soojung balls her hands into fists but can’t quite stop the tears streaming down. They continue to taunt her as she gets back up on her feet, a little wobbly. They gasp collectively as she lands a punch on the biggest boy’s face.

 

The biggest boy staggers back, and after recovering, grabs the collar of Soojung’s shirt and literally pulls her up off the ground. Soojung writhes and tries to wriggle out of his grasp, to no avail. He drops her back on the ground and she struggles to find her balance. She takes a couple of steps back as the boys crowd around her. Fearless as she was, she knew that this was definitely a losing battle, and she didn’t know if they would treat her like a girl and be nice, or treat her like a boy because she’d been beating them at everything anyway.

 

Suddenly, a small, dark figure hurtles himself in front of her. “Hey!” It was Jongin, heroically flinging his arms out and blocking Soojung off from the boys. “You’re not touching her!”

 

The biggest boy crosses his arms and frowns. “Stay out of this, Kim.”

 

“No,” Jongin replies defiantly, seemingly fearless but Soojung sees his hands tremble just a bit. “I’m not letting you hurt Soojungie.”

 

The boy draws closer to Jongin; nobody’s ever really stood up to him before, and he’s not sure how to react now. Jongin has no plan, either, and was just grateful when the boy’s older brother calls out for him and the gang of boys disintegrate.

 

Jongin and Soojung hold their breaths until they were really alone. “Phew. Now can you please stop looking for trouble,” Jongin says, pinching her arm.

Soojung winces. “Ow! I wasn’t looking for trouble. It’s not my fault I’m so much better at hanging upside down.”

 

Jongin sighs. “Well, be careful, I won’t always be around to look out for you.”

 

Soojung smirks. “Oh, you’ll always be around, but I’ll be looking after myself.”

 

//

a/n. title, again, from exo's "my lady".

okay so umm. i hope you're liking the progression of the plot and characterization and relationships between them so far? and yes the last part with soojung being followed and jongin saving her is completely inspired by the scene in 'reply 1997'. i've always sort of had a thing for guy-best-friend protecting girl-best-friend and 'reply' was the first time i actually saw it being acted out.

anyways yeah thank you for reading!