Minho just finished tidying up his room. He went downstairs to drink a glass of water, all the while thinking to call Taemin and ask him to play basketball with him and the other guys in the neighborhood.

He was rather surprised to see his friend sitting on the couch when he got to the living room.

“Taemin-ah?”

Taemin raised his eyes toward Minho. “Oh, hyung. Hi.”

“I was about to call you. I’m glad you’re here now, though. Let’s-” his words were cut off when he heard footsteps behind him. He turned around and saw Jinri descending down the stairs, dressed in a t-shirt and a knee-length skirt. From the looks of it, she wouldn’t be staying home.

“Where are you going, Jinri-ah?” he asked as Jinri reached the last step.

“Hi, oppa,” Jinri smiled, the corners of her eyes crinkling. “Taemin oppa asked me to go have lunch with him.”

Minho’s eyes widened. “What?!”

Jinri looked at him with a puzzled expression. “What’s wrong, Minho oppa?”

He recovered from his shocked state. “Oh…” his brows furrowed. “Isn’t it too early to have lunch?”

“We’ll walk around the park for a while. The spot where we used to play because I want to see it again,” Taemin said.

Minho turned to Taemin, then back to Jinri. “Err…you can’t,” he told Jinri. “Didn’t umma tell you to clean up your room?”

“I’m already finished. And appa and umma said yes, I could go with Taemin oppa,” Jinri answered, smirking.

“In that case, I’m going with you,” Minho said.

“Oppa!” Jinri stomped her foot on the floor, protesting.

Taemin gave him an awkward smile.

“Yah, Minho-ah, leave those two alone,” came his mother’s voice from the kitchen. “Don’t be so overprotective. Jinri is not a little girl anymore and she will just have lunch and take a stroll with your best friend.”

Mrs. Choi was suddenly beside Taemin moments after. “I’m sure Taemin can be trusted. How can’t I not trust this adorable face?” she pinched Taemin’s cheek and the boy turned red with embarrassment.

“But, umma…” Minho protested, not really knowing how he could explain to their mother why he didn’t want Jinri to go out with Taemin. He didn’t even know why himself. Maybe he’s just being a jealous brother…or a jealous best friend. But he just felt like Jinri is too young to date anyone, even Taemin.

“Go ahead, kids,” Mrs. Choi waved Taemin and Jinri away and they happily skipped toward the door. Before going out Jinri turned around and stuck her tongue out at Minho.

“Yah, Choi Jinri!” he yelled.

But the door already closed behind Taemin’s and Jinri’s backs.

“Aish, umma, I told you that Jung Soojung is a bad influence to Jinri. Have you seen what she just did? She stuck her tongue out at me. She got that impolite gesture from Krystal!” Minho told his mother, his eyes growing bigger again.

But Mrs. Choi just laughed at him. “Stop being so uptight, Minho-ah. And stop picking on Krystal! She’s not even here and she’s not doing anything to you. Must you mention her?” she poked her son’s side. “You must like her so much since she crosses your mind in this unlikely situation,” she teased.

Minho blushed.

“Aish, umma, you’re hopeless,” he grinned and looked at his mother. “I know you like her for me, but sorry to disappoint you, umma. That little brat isn’t my type.”

Mrs. Choi didn’t answer. She just chuckled as she made her way back to the kitchen.

………………………………………………

Krystal parked her bicycle a block away from the park. She fixed her sunglasses and the blond wig on her head before entering the park.

It was a beautiful autumn day, and she could see a lot of children playing. There are couples who are strolling hand in hand, but none of them resembles a certain Choi Jinri and a certain Lee Taemin. She scanned the area from left to right. Where would she find them?

She cocked her head to one side. Hmmm…where to begin?

She walked around for a while, sometimes earning baffled stares from those who notice her and it most likely is because of her disguise. Her huge sunglasses and her blond wig seemed out of place, but her deep purple lipstick is just too…weird. She smirked. Taemin wouldn’t be seeing her in these anyway.

Where is he? Where is Jinri? Does he like her? Maybe not. Maybe he just loves her like a little sister. They had known each other when they’re still young after all and they’re pretty close. He wouldn’t look at Jinri as a potential girlfriend, would he? Jinri should know that; she should see that Taemin is not for her.

Suddenly she caught a glimpse of a familiar face by the playground. Jinri!

She and Taemin were occupying two of the swings and they seemed to be deep in a conversation.

Krystal hurried toward a path where they couldn’t easily see her. She followed the path while trying to hide her face from their view, which is really unnecessary as Taemin and Jinri seemed lost in their own world.

She positioned herself behind some thick bushes near the swings. A few feet more and she could reach out and touch their backs. She carefully kneeled, making no noise as much as possible, and strained to hear their conversation.

Jinri was laughing.

“You remember that time when Minho hyung and I tried to climb a tree just to get your pet cat? You were crying so much and hyung was in a hurry to get down he slipped.”

Jinri laughed harder. “Yes, and I would have cried harder but fortunately he didn’t fall off because the waist band of his shorts caught on a tree branch…”

Taemin laughed. “And the next thing was he was hanging there and flailing while the poor cat was screeching and scratching at him but he couldn’t let it fall to the ground because you loved it so much. I pity Minho hyung, but it was such a funny sight.”

Jinri’s laughter was reduced to giggles. “It was. I even stopped crying and laughed at him. Ah, my poor Minho oppa.”

Krystal covered to prevent a giggle that threatened to escape her. She tried to imagine Minho as a little boy, suspended on a tree branch by the garter of his shorts. She suddenly wished she was there to see it. She was sure it would be hilarious.

She was still grinning when suddenly she was startled by a slight rustling behind her. The sound of a withered leaf crushed against a foot ensued.

She turned around, her heart thumping.

………………………………………..

Minho told his parents that he will go to Onew’s house to play basketball with the other boys. But the truth was that he followed Taemin and his sister to the park.

He headed straight to the playground and he immediately spotted the two of them at the swings. It was a good thing their backs were to him so that they were unable to see that he was there spying on them. He crouched down and carefully stepped nearer to where they were, but he froze when he saw a blond girl behind some bushes. She seemed to be spying at Jinri and Taemin, too.

Who is she? Some obsessed fangirl of Taemin?

He fell on all fours and slowly crawled on the grass toward the girl.

She straightened up a bit and Minho knew she had sensed his presence. She slowly turned around and he felt like he was anticipating some scary scene in a horror movie.

He recoiled and fell back on his as she faced him fully. Horror movie indeed! Minho felt like he was going to have a heart attack for a moment. The girl’s lips were a deep shade of purple, like that of a corpse. And she was wearing huge sunglasses that obscure most of her face.

She opened to speak and Minho knew he had just reached hell. “What are you doing here, frog?” she hissed.

His eyes widened. “Soojung?”

“Wrong,” she answered in a whisper. “Can’t you see, I’m Lady Gaga today, you idiot.”

Minho didn’t like her tone…well, what’s new? But his temper rose, anyway. “Yah!” he said rather loudly and Krystal hurriedly crawled near him.

“Shhh…!” she put her finger on his lips, accidentally picking his nose.

She let out a squeal. “Ewww!”

Krystal fell on her behind and vigorously rubbed her finger on Minho’s shirt. “Ew, that’s so gross!” she said in a high-pitched voice.

Minho clamped his hand on and it was his turn to shush her this time. His eyes darted toward where Jinri and Taemin were and breathed out in relief. It seemed that they hadn’t heard the commotion behind them.

Krystal pulled his hand from . “Get your hands off my mouth, ugly frog!” she hissed at him. “Get away from me!”

“Aish, look at you, you look like a poisonous spider with that sunglasses and that purple lipstick,” he smirked. “Which goes well with your looks and personality if you ask me.”

She kicked his leg. “You are so annoying! Get out of here! Why are you even here? Are you stalking me?”

“Stalking you?! Why would I even stalk someone who looked like she just drank squid ink?” he retorted.

“What are you doing here, then? Ah, you’re spying on them, too? You should be ashamed of yourself!” she lashed back.

“At least I came here to spy on them to protect my sister! What about you? You’re here to spy on them because you’re obsessed with Taemin! You’re the one who should be ashamed of yourself, Krystal Jung!” he wasn’t hissing or whispering now.

Krystal punched his shoulder and chest over and over again. “It’s none of your business! I hate you, I hate you!” she shrieked.

Minho tried to capture her hands to stop her from hitting him.

“Oppa? What are you doing here?”

Minho and Krystal froze.

Taemin and Jinri stood by the bushes, eyeing the two of them curiously.

Krystal suddenly pushed Minho to the ground, got up and bolted as fast as she could.

“Hyung, who’s that girl?” Taemin asked as his gaze followed the running Krystal who was still clad in her disguise.

Jinri followed the girl with her gaze, too and despite the blond hair and the sunglasses, she would always know her best friend anytime, anywhere…and in any look.

Hello everyone! As you have read, Minstal has already begun stalking and spying...but they would be agreeing to help each other in the chapters to come. How it would come about...read my updates and find out. Haha!

Thank you for the comments and for subscribing. I do hope you enjoyed reading this chap. :)