“So how do you think you did on the exam?” Key asks her as they leave the lecture hall together. It was their last test of their undergraduate career and Eunsook was so glad to be done.

“Ugh, I don’t even know, Key! My brain is fried,” she sighs as she pulls on her rain jacket. Key holds the door open for her as they exit the building and face the torrential downpour that had started during their exam.

“Wait!” he stops her from entering the storm, withdrawing an umbrella from his backpack to place over her head.

“Oh, thanks, Key,” Eunsook smiles at him as they begin the trek across campus. At this point it’s become routine to indulge themselves in some coffee and sweets after an exam, having started back freshmen year when they both needed a caffeine fix to take their minds off of everything. Key rattles on about how he thinks he did on the exam, but Eunsook is literally too exhausted to care so she just adds in one word comments whenever he pauses.

As they approach the student center, Key makes sure Eunsook is safely inside the building before closing his umbrella. She doesn’t notice that the left half of his body is soaked after their trek across campus where he mostly used the umbrella to make sure she didn't get wet.

They shoulder their way through the mass of students milling about to wait in line. Eunsook steps up and orders for both of them, knowing exactly what Key wants. She misses his small smile behind her as she orders before he takes his wallet out of his backpack and moves in front of her to pay, stopping her reach for her own. She begins to say something, but he shushes her and she relents knowing that it’s pointless to argue with him after years of encountering similar situations. Although Eunsook sometimes beats him to it, Key never relents and would end up surprising her with a cup of her favorite coffee (salted caramel mocha) the next time they saw each other anyway. She would just roll her eyes and accept it, even though she insisted that he didnt' need to bring her anything, to which he replied that he wanted to.

The barista calls their orders and they happily move to their favorite spot in front of one of the fireplaces. Key once again talks through their test and Eunsook attempts to join in. Although this was their last undergraduate exam, the two will be in the same master’s program at the music school in the fall and can only enjoy the reprieve for the next few months.

"Seriously Eunsook, just tell me you at least got the last question - we studied that for over an hour last night," he implores, knowing just how bad her memory is. While Key excelled in contemporary music, she did not and this last section about rock music had proven to be very challenging for her.

"Kim Kibum, if you ask me one more time I will strangle you," is all she says, her voice surprisingly lax for the words spoken. As she fiddles with her phone, she misses his smirk at her unconvincing attempt to threaten his life.

"Lay off, Lee. I just wanted to make sure all of that time we spent studying wouldn't go to waste. What use am I as a private tutor if my star pupil can't even-"

Just as she is about to hit him, adding in a "yah!" for emphasis, a group of students (freshmen by the looks of them) stop directly in front of the pair. Eunsook is startled by their sudden appearance and slowly lowers her arm from its precarious position inches away from Key's shoulder. The students just stand there staring at them and making the two seniors look at each other in perplexity.

After moments of silence, Key speaks up, an edge of frustration to his voice as he asks, "Can we help you with something?"

The freshmen look at each other and one boy steps forward, a little shy but seemingly determined. "We, uh, we wanted to say that you were great in Zorro. We saw it - well I saw it," the boy blushes at the confession, "like four times and you were just amazing, sunbae-nim."

The other freshmen nod enthusiastically in agreement, and Eunsook looks over to gauge her friend's reaction. Although this isn't the first time he's been complimented by his adoring fans ("Lockets" as she liked to call them since his nickname is Key), he never seems to do well with the praise and he usually stumbles over his words rather dorkily.

"Oh, um. Thanks," is all he says, looking briefly at the group before returning his gaze to Eunsook. She smiles at him and tries not to laugh at the peeved expression on his face.

"We simply loved the emotion you put into the romance scenes," a girl says, steppnig forward so that they can see her. "You look like a really great kisser." 

Eunsook gasps at the audacity of this freshmen while secretly applauding her smooth-as- compliment. Some people just know how to work it.

"Well it's called acting. I didn't even try, really," Key replies, his tone slightly more aggravated to indicate that the conversation is over. The freshmen look at each other and scurry away, causing Eunsook to purse her lips and level her gaze on her best friend.

"Kim Kibum, you need to learn better manners when people are complimenting you."

"Hmph! They were obviously flirting and it was just too lame to-"

"Key! What is wrong with you? They were adorable and you know it!" But he says nothing in return, just sitting back in his chair and folding his arms - sulking. He often does this whenever Eunsook mentions girls or dating - she's even tried talking about boys just to test the waters, but he never seemed interested. "Besides, you did do a great job with the romance scenes! You definitely earned that role even if you were 'simply acting!' I've never seen such passion on stage before and you know it so stop being a ."

He turns and gapes at her, "Excuse me? I know you are not being serious. You know I wanted you to be the lead with me! I had to try so hard not to break character for those scenes, ugh."

Although Eunsook had indeed auditioned for the main female role and Zorro's love interest, she hadn’t made the cut. Thankfully she was more interested in concert performance than theater so she hadn't been that upset by the news. Key, however, had been outraged when she hadn’t gotten the part and had threatened to drop out. Eunsook had begged him to accept it, reasoning that it was stupid not to accept an amazing role just because his friend didn’t get a part, and he had finally relented on the condition that she help him practice.

Eunsook had had to endure countless nights of rehearsing lines and watching practices to show her continued support of his role. He insisted that she was the only person he felt comfortable running lines with so she was obliged to play along with his diva moments to make sure that he stayed on track with his preparation.

All in all, she hadn’t known why he was being so weird about the whole thing. He loved the musical and had been excited before auditions about finally having a decent kissing scene in comparison to the other musicals their department had done. Eunsook was especially confused because the student they had chosen for the main female lead was absolutely gorgeous and was Key’s type: fashion-forward and an amazing singer. But whenever she asked him about it, he only grumbled and said that she was a diva. This only made Eunsook laugh because if anyone was a diva it was Kim Kibum.

Their friendship was an odd one but it was one that Eunsook cherished above all else. After high school she had lost touch with most of her friends and she was still relatively introverted when she started college. But right from the very first choir practice when the professor assigned seating so that all of the parts were intermixed, Kim Kibum had sat next to her and the rest was history.

Eunsook doesn’t remember exactly how it happened, but one day she found herself in his room playing guitar hero and teasing his roommate before it struck her that she had a friend in college. Needless to say their friendship blossomed once they both decided to continue music as a career. Key insisted they practice together often because Eunsook was also a skilled piano player and had quite the singing range.

Their friendship was tested when Key decided he wanted to study abroad in the United States for a semester and they lost touch. Although they had promised to talk every day, Eunsook had found it increasingly more difficult to do so with the weird time difference. Also, after a month or so into the semester, her time became increasingly more precious when she had her first-ever boyfriend, Chansung, who demanded a lot of her attention.

She had been so excited to tell Key the news, he knew all about her botched boy history, but when they had skyped and she had introduced them, Key had gotten so upset that he hung up the call. Eunsook had been confused, thought they had lost the connection, but he had refused to speak to her for two weeks. She had no idea what had upset him and Chansung was just as puzzled. Key finally messaged her on facebook, apologizing for his reaction and saying that he was just under a lot of stress in his classes. Although he spoke English very well, Eunsook worried that he wasn’t fitting in and was anxious for him to return home.

On Eunsook’s twenty-first birthday, Chansung had taken her out to celebrate at one of the local bars, which had been great until he got way too drunk. Although Eunsook wasn’t a small girl, she was still easily overpowered by the 6’4” solid mass of her boyfriend and it had scared her.

“Chansung,” she said, attempting to push him off her. He attached himself to her neck, no doubt leaving a hickey- and they were in public! “Chansung, stop it.”

“No,” he said, moving to capture and press her into the booth. “Come on baby, it’s a special night. Let’s make it really special.”

Eunsook had panicked a little at the thought that she really might not be able to stop him. She had told him repeatedly that she wasn’t ready for anything serious but he was just too drunk that night to listen when she told him not to be so handsy in public. Thankfully she had a large group of friends with her and they dragged him away before it got too heated.

She had broken up with him the next day afraid to feel that way again.

That night she skyped with Kibum so that he could wish her a happy birthday but before they could finish saying hello she had burst out crying. Key had been so concerned that he threatened to jump on the next plane home. She assured him that everything was all right but had to tell him exactly what had happened. By the end of her story, he had become very silent and seemed almost frozen on the screen. Eunsook worried that the connection had been lost until he finally replied and asked, what seemed like the millionth time, if she was alright. After she reassured him, again, that she was really okay and Chansung hadn’t actually done anything, he claimed that he was tired and bid her good night before ending their call. From that day on, he made sure to contact her once a day to make sure that she was okay, but that was the extent of their conversations. Eunsook was glad to have her friend back even if she didn’t fully understand the shift in his attitude.

When Key finally returned to Seoul, Eunsook surprised him at the airport and he almost walked right past her on his way to baggage claim.

“Kim Kibum!” she shouted, jumping up and down to get his attention before he was too far away.

He whirled around and stopped in the middle of everything, just staring at her. She ran over to him, vigorously shaking the sign that she had made until she was close enough, “You dummy, you walked right past me! Look, I made this huge flashy sign and you didn’t even notice. Rude!”

She shoved the sign at him, honestly trying to get some of the glitter onto him just beuase she could, when he ripped the sign away from her and embraced her, lifting her off of her feet and twirling her around in a circle.

“Oh my god! Put me down, put me down!” she shrieked, afraid that she would break him. Key was a slender guy and she was by no means light. “Yah, stop it!” she hit him, trying to make him release her before he broke his back.

“I missed you!” he said, finally stopping but not putting her down. She squirmed in his grip and mumbled, “Oh my god, I am going to break you. Put me down right now, Kim Kibum!”

He laughed and finally put her down, but just so she was standing on her tippy toes. “Eunsook,” he said, his serious tone causing her to meet his eyes. “You. Are. Not. Heavy. Get. That. Through. Your. Thick. Skull.” And at that he had tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and leaned in to kiss her cheek, lingering maybe a little longer than normal.

Eunsook couldn’t wrap her mind around what had just happened but she refused to over analyze it and just leaned into the embrace, glad that her dear friend was back in her arms.

“Seriously, Eunsook, I missed you so much, I just-" but before he had finished, a celebrity had walked by and the terminal went crazy with fans and security guards. Eunsook smiled and dragged him away from the crowd, missing the disappointed look on his face at the interuption.

"So, what are we doing tonight? Do you want to go out or just watch a movie?” Kibum asked her, drawing her back to the present.

“Oh, I am definitely getting drunk tonight. We're finally done with undergrad! And don’t you even think about whining or making some stupid excuse why we can’t go. We deserve this and we are going to have fun, dammit! Maybe I’ll even find a boy to take home,” she winked, laughing at the unamused look on his face. He hated to talk boys with her ever since the Chansung incident.

Eunsook secretly believed that he hated the idea of her getting a boyfriend becuase it would take precious time away from him, which was probably true, but she also sensed that he was still pissed off that he hadn’t been there to beat up Chansung on her birthday. Every time they saw him on campus, which was rare since Chansung was in the business school, Key would stop talking and move as if he was going to pursue him but she always stopped him by placing a calming hand on his arm or shoulder.

“Fine, we can go out,” he relented, “but you are NOT finding some random to make out with, geesh.” As Eunsook rolled her eyes at this typical response, she missed the slight twinge of hurt that flashed through Key’s eyes before he was once again smiling, happy that Eunsook was happy.

That night Eunsook fulfilled her wish to be drunk and Key was stuck babysitting her. Eunsook was normally soft spoken but when she was drunk she became very feisty, almost alarmingly so, and Key always had his work cut out for him.

“Excuse you,” she yelled after someone that had brushed roughly past her in the bar, looking affronted that someone had even dared bump into her.

“Eunsook, honey, we’re in a crowded bar, it’s bound to happen,” Key whispered, hoping to placate her before she got really fired up. One night she had accused a whole group of guys of being ist when they hadn’t opened the door for her. Although a drunk Eunsook made him laugh, Key also had to stay on the lookout for potential disasters.

“Kibum-ah,” she whined, losing her balance and leaning into him. He wrapped his arm more securely around her so that she wouldn’t fall off the stool. “Ugh, they were so rude though, I just want them to know that it’s not okay,” as she blathered on, Key motioned to the bartender to bring two waters. As he tipped him, Eunsook began commenting on the mural behind the wall, missing the way that Key smiled fondly at her drunken state but the bartender caught it and leaned in to say, “You two are a cute couple,” before turning to help another customer.

Key felt his face burn but was grateful that Eunsook was not paying attention. Thankfully, she was gulping down her drink and seemed content, at least for the moment.

“I’m going to the bathroom,” she announced, leaning back into Key so that he had to support her as she got off of the barstool. He began to follow her but she made him promise to stay at their chairs so they wouldn’t have to stand later. Torn on what to do, he did as she said knowing that in her drunken state she would be very upset with him if he didn’t listen to her.

After ten minutes, Key began to look around, hoping to catch a glimpse of her as people pushed to sit in her chair. He was able to turn them away for now but you could only hold spots for so long before you were just another at the bar. Fifteen minutes passed and he still didn’t see her, so he began to worry. He texted her, urging her come back ASAP – also remembering that she tends to make a lot of friends in the bathroom when she was drunk because she deemed it necessary to compliment every single person she met. Still, he worried, and after another five minutes, he got up off the stool to search for her and take her home. It was getting late and he knew she'd be tired.

When he reached the bathroom he asked a girl waiting outside to check if Eunsook was in there; she returned a few minutes later saying no one was in the girls bathroom by that name. Key thanked her before turning around and starting to scan the bar a little more closely, panic settling into the pit of his stomach. What if she needed him and he wasn’t there?

“Oh my god, Joonhi!” Eunsook’s voice reached him, at least he thought it was her voice. He followed the continued conversation into another area of the bar and found her embracing another woman near the pool tables. Key breathed a sigh of relief as he made a beeline for her.

“Eunsook, where did you sneak off to?” he said, wrapping his arm around her waist to steady her when he noticed she was a little unstable on her feet.

“Oh, Sookie! Is this your boyfriend? He is dreamy!” the other girl shouts excitedly. Key smiles because he was standing right there, but Eunsook missed this and laughed out loud.

“Oh my god, no! This is Key, my…um, my Key!” Joonhi looks between them as Key removes his arm from around the drunken object of his affections. Sometimes he really hates his life.

The girls begin talking once again and Key drifts off, standing just behind Eunsook to give them space but still be in reach. He touches her lightly on the small of her back to indicate his departure before he walks over to get them some more waters. After a few minutes waiting in line, he makes his way back to where the two girls are still engrossed in conversation. A friend from another class intercepts him and they reminisce on the year, but he still keeps an eye on Eunsook in case she needs him.

From the corner of his eye, Key notices a couple of guys approach them, making him stiffen infinitesimally, wary of their intentions. He says goodbye to his friend and moves closer to make sure that these guys know Eunsook, and her friend, are not alone. Finally within earshot, he easily overhears their conversation as Eunsook speaks over her friend to answer a question one of the guys asked.

“And what are you supposed to be? The fat friend," the shorter of the two men says, laughing and looking at his counterpart for validation.

Key instantly sees red. He looks over to the in question to see that he is openly jeering at Eunsook who is just standing there absolutely still. No sass, no drunken shouting, nothing. “,” Key thinks, moving around to teach this guy a lesson.

“Seriously, Joonhi, what is this fattie doing with you? You’re such a babe and she’s just gross-“ before Kibum hears any more, he rushes the and punches him straight in the face.

“Shut the up!" When he turns back to Eunsook, he stops dead in his tracks. She has tears running down her cheeks and is only half successful in her attempts to wipe them away.

“Come on, sweetie,” he says, grabbing her hand and pulling her away from the scene through the mass of bodies and out into the night air. Eunsook remains silent the entire walk back to his apartment, only stumbling a few times. When he finally sits her down on his couch, he brings her a glass of water unsure what to do or say to make this better.

Her phone rings, jarring both of them from their silent musings. Eunsook brings it out of her purse and answers, accidentally putting it on speaker.

“Oh my god, Sookie! Are you okay? Where did you go? Are you with that hottie – your ‘non-boyfriend’ - what’s his name-?”

“It’s Kibum. And yes, she’s at my apartment. She will call you tomorrow,” and he takes the phone from her limp grip and hangs up.

“Eunsook-ah? Say something,” he pleads, needing to hear her voice.

Eunsook looks at him and sinks back into the couch, breathing deeply before exclaiming, “That douchebag! That was the rudest thing I have ever heard!” Key is slightly relieved at the indignant tone in her voice but he is still worried.

“Yes, it was very rude and so untrue. Eunsook, you know that right, you know that you’re-“ but she cuts him off before he can finish.

“Oh, trust me, Kim Kibum, when I say that I am very confident with who I am and the body I have. I just never, ugh, I just – wow that jerk was an !” she fumes, crossing her arms and folding her legs under herself. Key is glad to see that her feistiness hasn't dissipated even though she seems to be sobering up rather quickly, no doubt due to the adrenaline rushing through her veins.

“G-good,” is all he can say, not sure what exactly she wants to hear at this point. “Do you, uh, need anything?”

Eunsook sighs, looking down and shaking her head. “No, I’m fine. Really, Kibum-ah, I’m fine.” She misses the way his face softens when she says his name. She rarely uses endearments so Key tends to treasure every one that she gives him.

“I’m sorry he ruined your night, noona,” Key says softly, moving to sit next to her on his couch.

“Psht, puh-lease. I am not going to let some random -face ruin my night. I am just fine. Sure it could have ended on a happier note, but I stopped caring what jerks like him thought a long time ago.”

Key nods, relieved that she isn't that upset. But he knows that even if she says she's fine, she's hurt on some deep level because he hardly ever sees her cry. In fact, he is the crier in their relationship, not her.

“I can’t believe you punched him!” she says, turning to face him and picking up his right hand to examine it. “Oh my gosh, you have bruises!”

“Yeah, that happens when you punch something solid,” Key says, distracted by the way her soft hands are rubbing over his knuckles.

“You shouldn’t have hurt yourself, not for me,” she whispers, moving his hand back and forth to look at it from every angle.

“What? Like I would stand by and let some guy just bash my girl in front of me. Puh-lease,” he huffs, indignant that she would think such a thing. Key's ears buzz as his heart races at the thought of someone being so rude to Eunsook. She means the world to him and he can't believe that people can be so dense.

Minutes pass and he finally notices the silence. Eunsook has stopped examining his hand and is now holding it in her lap, motionless. Key was too distracted by his memory of punching the guy and thinking about everything else he wanted to do to catch the look of awe on Eunsook’s face.

“What did you say?” she asks, finally breaking the silence.

“Um...,” he responds, unsure of what exactly he had said in the heat of the moment.

“Y-you called me,” she clears , “your girl….?”

Key freezes, thinking back to what he had said, realizing his slip-up. His eyes widen and he looks at Eunsook who is staring right back at him, now clutching his hand as if to anchor him to her. Like he would (or could) go anywhere.

“Well, yeah,” he says hesitantly. “Eunsook, don’t you know by now how I feel? You’re my everything and I have just been waiting for you to-“

“Oh my god,” she breathes, voice barely audible.

“What?” he asks, unsure of what she is reacting to.

“I’m your girl….?” She says this as if she is testing it out for the first time, as if she is re-seeing their entire relationship up until this point.

Key huffs, “Yes, you infuriating woman! I have been yours since I met you and I don’t know what else I could have done to show you that over the last four years.”

“Well you could have just ing told me!” she screeches, looking up at him. Key feels his stomach flop at her words and their implication.

“What? I tried-“

“Kim Kibum, did you really though? When exactly did you try to tell me anything about how you felt?” she pushes. This time he is the one crossing his arms and sitting back on the couch.

“I-I thought it was obvious,” he whispers. “I was afraid to be too direct because I thought I was so obvious. I thought you were just interested in being friends because you never said anything or did anything-“

But before he can finish, Eunsook moves in to capture his lips with hers, effectively shutting him up. He groans into the kiss and she pushes her tongue into his mouth until they are both gasping for air. She moves to sit in his lap but hesitates until he grips her thighs and pulls her down, loving how perfect she feels, how her shapely figure fills his hands and then some. They finally break apart for air. Kibum is dazed, unsure if that really just happend or if he is dreaming. She breaks him from his reverie, hitting him on the chest and leaning in to nip at his nose playfully.

“You’re stupid,” she mumbles tiredly before nuzzling into his neck as her exhaustion catches up to her. She loves the feeling of him underneath her, loves knowing that it is Key, her best friend, and not some random guy from a bar. As he tilts her chin up to capture her lips once again, her heart flutters and Eunsook knows that this is the first time in a long time that her feelings are not one-sided.

"You're stupid," Key breathes back, moving his lips lightly to kiss along her jawline as he lays down on the couch and eases her down on top of him. She only hums, snuggling into his chest and reminding herself to articulate her argument for him being stupid later when she isn't so tired. All she knows as she finally closes her eyes is that whatever feelings she has for Kibum, they definitely aren't those of "just friends," and she is so glad that she can finally admit that to herself because the feeling is, apparently, mutual.