WITH CLARA...

"Ah, next is a song hand picked by DJ Cheonsa, are you ready to listen to it?" Dino's voice was clear and confident through the microphone at the school's studio, grinning over at his co-host. "I know I am! What is your song for the week?" 

Clara smiled brightly back, adjusting her headphones and having the the song ready to go, "A-ah, thank you so much DJ Chan-Seoul! For those of y-you listening, this is C^2: MAK99 this afternoon, and w-we'll be back to take a caller after this." 

 "Here's my recomendation for the week: Two! Three!" by BTS! Please enjoy!" She pressed play as Dino muted the mics, and both took off their headsets before turning to each other. 

"I keep forgetting that even though you're like, 4'11, you love that hard hip-hop and soul r&b music." Dino laughed, patting Clara on the back. She pouted, "N-not fair! I'm 5'1 and-d a half! I'll grow some more!" 

Dino nodded, "Of course, of course. Hey, speaking of growth," He leaned back in his chair, "How are your speech classes?"

Clara immediately lit up, "Oh! I made g-great progress today! I was able to be heard from across the r-room today and it didn't hurt!!" While it may be a little silly to hear for some people, it was a huge acheivement for Clara. She was so quiet and had a very weak diaphragm, making it hard and even painful for her to project her voice. Hence the speech classes and the radio show, she wanted to get better and soon be able to be as loud and confident as her other members.

"That's amazing, Clara! Jeonghan-hyung and the others will be so proud of you!" Dino grinned. Their conversation dabbled a bit about homework, before jamming along to the rest of the song before it ended. As the final notes started to play, they put their headsets back on and unmuted the mics.

"Alright, that was Two! Three! by BTS, as recommended by DJ Cheonsa." Dino welcomed their viewers back. "Now it's time for a caller request, we've got one on h-hold right now, it looks like --" Clara put the phone on speaker so the radio could pick it up and let the caller be heard by the listeners, "Hello? How's your day g-going?"

"Hi, this is another angel calling ~" Dino immediately began groaning while Clara squealed, "Oppa!" very happily. The voice laughed. Yes, the caller was none other than Clara's beloved big brother, Yoon Jeonghan. 

"Yes, everyone, this is DJ Cheonsa's big brother, say hello to the listeners, 1004." They used his birthday as to not cause mass chaos, since no one really knew who was behind the voices of the afternoon radio show. It goes to show how often Jeonghan called in to either tease Dino or talk to his little sister.

"Hello everyone ~ It's 1004 again! I was just calling to ask when my baby," Dino groaned again, "And my little angel will be coming home?" 

"Oppa!" "Hyuuuuung!" Were the two shouts heard over Jeonghan's laugh. "Oh hush, just answer. Are both of you coming home after this?" 

"Yes, oppa." Clara finally relented, and she could practically hear the grin on her brother's face as he spoke, "Good! See you soon! Can't wait to hear DJ Chan-Seoul's pick of the week!" 

After Dino introduced his song, "P.Y.T by Michael Jackson for the weekend that's coming up, enjoy as we play you out! This has been DJ Chan-Seoul,"

"And DJ Cheonsa!" 

They both closed out the show together, "On C^2: MAK99! See you on Wednesday!" And as the every familiar Jackson song went on through the speakers, the two started to pack up the equipment they used. "I'm thankful we get to hang out, honestly." Dino admitted after the song ended. They had their backpacks and face masks on, ready to take the metro to Pledis and Seventeen's dorm. 

"It's nice that all the fans don't get the wrong i-idea." Clara nodded as they exited the building, heading across the street to the metro's entrance. Most fans, when they saw pictures of Dino and Clara, as well as her entering or leaving the dorms (as well as Jeonghan coming over to 4xU's dorm-- which was more often than you'd think) would just assume it was the Yoon siblings getting together. It wasn't hard to believe or to push onto fans since the two always mentioned each other and the close relationship they had.
 
It also helped Clara with her insecurities and her introverted nature. She hated to burden people and so she usually isolated herself. It was a habit she strongly disliked and wanted to change. Seungkwan, Dino, and Joenghan knew that and tried to invite her over as often as possible for her to hang out not only with Seventeen, but Pristin, After School, Nu'est, and many other members of Pledis. 

As they entered the station, Dino checked his phone to see where the group actually was. "Ah, they've started the recording session already." He shook his head, "I hate when they do that." She adjusted her grip on the train car's pole before speaking, "They won't just leave you out of t-the album, right?"

"Yeah but it's funny to watch Seungkwan, Dokyeom and Hoshi to work up Woozi in the studio." Dino laughed, remembering when Seungkwan and Dokyeom were recording at the same time and decided to do a high note contest, despite Woozi fussing and saying they needed just to record. Afterwards, Hoshi went into the booth and proceeded to introduce himself as the next contestant for the high note contest and screech his lungs off. 

Clara just shook her head, but laughed all the same. An angry Woozi was pretty funny. Again, the two fell into a comfortable silence, checking their phones and making sure to transfer on the right line. Finally after reaching Yeoksam-dong station an hour later, they started their trek towards the entertainment company's recording building. It wasn't too far of a walk thankfully, and they entered the building a bit later, climbing the stairs to the correct studio. 

"We've arrived and I brought everyone's favorite Yoon sibling~" Dino announced as he opened the door, revealing himself and Clara to the members there. She smiled as the ones who weren't in the sound booth's private area came to greet her, they all looked tired but they always looked happy to have her over and with them. it definitely made her feel special. 

"Vocal team is recording right now, so you'll have a few minutes where you're not swamped by your best friend and brother." Seungcheol patted her head affectionately, leading her to the table where everyone settled down and she was able to talk. 

Of course, the first person she tracked down was the quiet Chinese boy. "Nǐ hǎo, MíngHào-gēgē!"

Minghao smiled warmly at Clara, "Nǐ hǎo, Jinsol!" Jun also joined the two, greeting her, "Nǐ hǎo, Jinsol~"

"Nǐ hǎo, Jùnhuī-gēgē!" Clara greeted back, eagerly looking between the two. She'd been itching to practice and communicate with them for ages, and she was excited to finally be able to do so.

"Xuéxiào zěnme yàng? (how was school)" Minghao asked. This time, Clara was prepared. She checked her Chinese translator app and everything on the way so she'd be able to tell him her accomplishment at school... And Jun. He also should know!

"Hǎo, Jīntiān wǒ zài kè qián shuōhuà! Měi gèrén dōu kěyǐ tīng dào wǒ de shēngyīn! (good, today I spoke in front of the class!And everyone could hear me!)" She spoke confidently, making both Jun and Minghao grin from ear to ear. 

"Tài bàngle! (that's awesome!) " They both congratulated her. Jun put an arm around her shoulders, giving her a side hug while saying, "Gàosù nǐ de gēgē, Hǎo de? (tell your brother, okay?)" Clara couldn't help but feel proud that they were so happy for her. "Xièxiè! (thank you!)"

Minghao hugged her next, giving her a little squeeze before letting her go, "Hey everyone! Guess what Clara did today?" He brought everyone's attention to them. Clara' blushed, hiding her face behind her hands. 

"Can I tell them?" Minghao asked, and when she nodded, he didn't hestitate, "She spoke in front of the class today, and everyone could hear her!" As soon as they heard that, cheers and more hugs were bestowed upon the small girl, making her even more embarrassed of the attention on her.

Seungcheol was the last to get to her, looking as proud as her actual brother would be when he found out, "You did so well! We're all very proud of you, soon you'll have no problem at all and blow us all away!" 

Clara just smiled, hugging Seungcheol back and telling everyone in detail about her class and her accomplishment. Only a few words into her story, the studio doors burst open to reveal the vocal unit of Seventeen, with Jeonghan and Seungkwan in the front. "Excuse me, where is my best friend???" Seungkwan demanded, spotting the bow and squeezing himself inbetween the leader and her. Before anyone could blink, Seungkwan had swiped Clara and had her with the vocal team, mostly inbetween him and Jeonghan. 

Minghao spoke up, "You should be really proud of her, Jeonghan-hyung! She spoke in front of class today and could be heard by everyone!" At this, all the vocal team began their rounds of congratulations, squeezing her and cheering loudly. 

"Oppa! I didn't come all the way here to be squeezed and squished!" Clara whined, earning a gasp from Jeonghan as he pulled her from Seungkwan. "You've been teaching her too much about sass, how dare you corrupt my precious angel sister!" Seungkwan sputtered, looking offended, "Excuse you, look who she has for a brother??? King of sass and insults???"

And with that, Jeonghan ignored his group mate to turn his attention to his sister, "Are you staying for dinner, Jinsol?" He asked, smiling widely. 

"Would it be a bother? I've just missed you so much, with your preparations for the album I didn't want to intrude --" She stuttered, only to be silenced by a warm hug from her big brother.

"You're never, ever a bother Jinsol, okay? I'm always going to make time for you." He petted her head, "This also means that we get to have time to ourselves, sorry losers~" He stuck his tongue out at the rest of them, who pretended to be upset but really, it was to be expected. They knew how close the Yoon siblings were and when they had time to spend together, the group tried to give them as much privacy and quality time together as they could. (Except Seungkwan, who refused to leave Jinsol alone pretty much ever). 

The rest of the evening was spent in the practice room, playing around and Hoshi teaching little snippets of the new dance to Clara, eating ramen for dinner (because with 14 people, who really expects them to be able to spend a lot?) and then every member having a turn dancing with Clara, either with their songs, Michael Jackson (because Dino), Clara's group's songs, even other groups that they all enjoyed listening too. 

Minghao stepped up for his turn, and Clara was expecting some hip hop song to be put on (since they both loved the genre and he could show off a little), but both were shocked to find a slower dance song to be put on. "It's on shuffle, I swear! Let's see what you got, we all know you both can dance to hip hop!" Seungkwan claimed, holding the Ipod tightly in his hand.

"Minghao-ge, come here!" Clara, motioned him over, directing him to put one of his hands on her waist and and hold her hand with the other. Minghao was bright red, but Clara assumed it was because all the boys were teasing and yelling at them. "Ready? One, two three --" And Clara led Minghao through a simple ballroom dance. 

"Who taught you how to do that, Clara?" Hoshi asked, and Clara just smiled as she and Minghao seperated. "Naeun-unnie did! I always ask her to teach me new dances whenever she and I hang out, and when she's up for it I learn some pretty neat stuff!" 

It was getting late when everyone decided to go back to the dorms, tuckered out from dancing and screeching lyrics to songs that sometimes weren't even right. However, Jeonghan and Clara stayed outside as Sang Mi was on her way to pick her up, still talking and catching up as she leaned into his side, revelling in the comfort that was her brother.

"I remember when we went to Busan's beaches in the summer when I was six and you were still a baby." Jeonghan smiled, "You were so cute, playing with sand and trying to eat the shells I brought back." Clara giggled, having no memory but remembering seeing the pictures of the trip in a photo album growing up.

"I miss that." He sighed, leaning back against the bench. Clara looked over, brows furrowed. "Miss what? Childhood?" She asked, quiet and gentle as ever. 

"I miss spending time with you. I miss being able to just... go out and hang out with people.. Even going on trips can be a hassle." Jeonghan sighed, "I miss our parents too. I just miss our life before becoming idols. Don't you? At least sometimes?"

Clara was quiet for a few moments, thinking over her thoughts and taking in what her brother said. "I... I do miss it. But --" She saw him look over in curiousity. 

"I... I-i'm so thankful for the paths we d-decided to take. I-it was so hard for both of us. W-we did give up a lot. I-it is hard to really think that w-we can't just g-go and see mom and dad, that w-we have to plan weeks in advance to e-even see each other for a f-few hours sometimes--" She swallowed a little, getting teary eyed.

"B-but y-you got to d-do what you love, and I-i found something I-i loved too. A-and now..." She smiled, wiping away her tears before they fell, "I-i have thirteen brothers and s-seven sister who l-love and take care of n-not only me, but y-you too. I-i never really w-worry about you k-knowing you have e-everyone here."

Jeonghan coughed, and Clara could tell he was close to tears too. He pulled her close, hugging her tight and playing with her hair. "I love you so much, Jinsol." He whispered. "I'm so glad you have your seven sisters, they take such good care of you and it helps me so much to know that. You're so pure and optimistic still, and I'm so happy you were able to keep that through your training. I hope you never lose it."

Clara hugged him back just as tight, hoping that none of the people she loved and cares about were hurt or lost their happiness. As long as they had each other, it'd be okay... right?

WITH VENUS...

Just because the younger girls were on break didn't mean that all of them took the time off to be lazy or to stop training. Venus for one, was never one to turn down an opportunity to dance or train in any way. Sometimes it was lonely, but luckily, she wasn't alone today.

"Five, six seven eight --" Krystal counted as they went off on the dance break of 4 Walls, something that Venus had really always wanted to learn and when she and Krystal had been getting bubble tea and coffee earlier, she had mentioned it and Krystal immediately brought her to SM's training building to teach her. Venus and Krystal were becoming fast friends, because of their tendency to be quiet or shy on camera and at first glance, but as soon as you got to know them becoming some of the most extra and silly people you'd ever meet.

Venus was just happy to be out of the dorm and having fun, especially with dancing. It was what she first started out doing anyways, and being with a friend just made it all the better.

Especially if she could catch the other off guard with weird faces and poses while she was so focused on the dance. "Oh my god, Venus pleeease!" Krystal almost choked on her laughter as she caught sight of Venus lunging with her arms similar to a tree shape, all the while her face contorted into a strange expression as she mouthed the words.

In return Krystal would do the same thing when she asked Venus to teach her one of her group's dances. Only Krystal stepped it up by adding noises or random screeches while Venus was trying to remember the order of the dance. 

"Oh shhhhhhhhhhffffuuuuuuuu--" Venus tried to stop herself from cursing by slurring her words together, making Krystal cackle with laughter. This went on for a bit until they were both just sitting on the floor in a fit of laughter at each other's antics, gasping for air. 

Krystal sat up, still giggling but recovering a bit, "Forget working out, I'll have perfect abs from this, oh my god." She grinned down at Venus, who rolled over as she calmed down. "Same. All this laughing has made me hungry though." And at that, Venus's stomach signalled that it was indeed time for food. Krystal let out anothe giggle, standing and pulling Venus up, "Let's grab something to tide us over from the cafeteria." 

Venus's 'snack' was mostly junk food and sweets -- with a pickle on the side. Honestly, Krystal wasn't really sure of how she procurred all of this stuff, but shrugged it off and stole a bag of honey butter chips, watching in amusement as Venus dug in and took a bite of cake.

"Well hello there ~" The male voice came from behind Venus, and she was about to tell whoever it was to right off until she realized it was Kai, who happened to be her friend's boyfriend. Beside him, though... She swallowed her cake in order to distract herself, especially after Krystal agreed to let the two join them for a while. Kai immediately took a seat next to Krystal, wrapping his arm casually around the back of her chair and Sehun took a seat next to Venus.

"Congratulations on finishing your first round of promotions," Sehun finally said to Venus, who simply blinked as he spoke, "Are you enjoying your time off?"

Venus remembered to swallow before speaking, "Yeah, it's nice to not have to have such a strict schedule... or diet." She motioned to her array of snacks, "Are you? EXO finished promotions a couple weeks after us, I think?"

"Yeah, we did," Sehun stretched, his lower lip jutting out and Venus took a bite of her pickle in order to shock herself out of thinking of how cute he was, "I'm just so bored. I wish I had more stuff to do." 

Venus shrugged, "Well, it's pretty easy if you actually go outside and hang out with people." Kai and Krystal began cracking up at Venus' blunt statement, Sehun in shock as Venus just continued to eat her pickle. 

"Wow," He finally shook his head in good humor, "Just calling me out, aren't you?" 

"I call it like I see it." Was her response, causing more laughter, even from Sehun. Krystal smiled widely, "I knew you two would get along once we actually ran into each other." 

"Listen, I go outside, I hang out with people!" Sehun complained, but absolutely no one at this table was buying it. Venus simply watched in amusement as Sehun whined and claimed to have plenty of friends outside of his dorm that he talked to and hung out with.

"See, you can say a lot of things," Venus started packing her trash up, "But I'll believe it when there's solid evidence in front of my eyes of Oh Sehun being outdoors and actually enjoying himself." And with that, she went to throw her trash away, leaving the couple laughing and Sehun plotting.

When she came back around, Sehun immediately sprung into action. "You want evidence?" Sehun raised an eyebrow, and Venus almost cursed and blessed his parents for giving him such perfect eyebrows (listen, as much fun as she was having taking Sehun down a notch, she was still a fan. She had her moments...) 

"I most certainly would love some evidence." She responded, sitting back down and cracking open the water bottle she had gotten on her way back.

"Fine, let's hang out sometime." 

Venus really wished she hadn't chosen that time to take a gulp of water, because now she was hacking up a lung and everyone was looking at her with concern or fear. She coughed a couple more times as she settled down, catching Krystal asking if she was okay. "I'm still breathing, so, yeah, I think I'm okay." Venus nodded, making a face at her water bottle. 'I thought I could trust you.' She hissed in her head, before giving her attention back to what caused the scene in the first place.

"Anyways, back to my proposal. You want proof, so let's hang out. All of us." Sehun motioned over the four of them, and Venus let a small internal sigh of relief out. A group of people including oh Sehun? She could handle. One on one with him? Venus wasn't quite sure about that yet.

So the next few minutes were spent making a group chat on kakaotalk for the four of them. "If we think of anyone else, just ask and we'll add them in. It'll be fun!" Krystal seemed really excited and happy about the idea of hanging out with a group of friends, and Venus couldn't blame her. It would be nice to sort of have a feel of what being a normal young adult was like.

Just then, Venus' kakao notification sound dinged. Checking it, she looked up, "Sorry, it's one of my members, hold on --" She proceeded to read the whole message before explaining it.

"She said she's heading back to the dorms and was wondering if I'd like to go with." She showed the message to the group. Krystal insisted on walking her friend out, so the two bid goodbye to their companions and headed in the direction of the exit. Honestly, Venus was looking forward to being back in her own dorm after a long day... But....

"Soooo if you don't have any plans," She shrugged, looking over at her friend, "You wanna come too?"

"Uhmmm yes I most definitely do!" Krystal grinned, "I really love hanging out with you guys, I get to see my sister, I get out of my dorm which is lonely, and more importantly -- no not being alone in my doorm is really important honestly." 

"If you're ever bored, just show up at our dorm. I know JJ would love it and the others would too." Venus said, and Krystal was just about buzzing with happiness. "I mean, if you're sure, I don't want to like, intrude --"

"Oh my goooosh, stooooop," She drawled, "You come over whenever you want. Deal? I'll even make sure you've got like a key or access to our building or whatever." 

Needless to say, Tina was thrilled to have JJ's sister coming over, "Sang Mi is picking up Clara, so we should all be able to have dinner together!" 

"I'm just warning you, Krystal," Venus warned her friend as they leaned against the train's poles, "When we're all together in one place, it's very, very chaotic."

"I can't wait!" Krystal insisted, and both of the girls looked over at each other. 

"Don't say we didn't warn you."
 

WITH SOPHIE...

A ukelele strummed in the empty dorms of the eight girls, breaking its silence with its sound. "Oh~" Sophie sang, hanging off the edge of the couch as she continued to play, "hoooow boring Chase is at home in the dooooorms~" She paused, "I mean I guess she's sleeeeeeping but stiiiiiill~~~" She pouted, sitting up with her ukelele as she got no response from their room. Chase finally managed to secure a day off in what felt like forever, and was still asleep after god knows how long. Well, it was about since like, 3 AM and it was currently nearing 6 PM so...

"IT'S BEEN 15 HOUUUUUURS SINCE I'VE SEEEEN MY BEST FRIIIIIIIIEND~" Sophie began again, "OOOOOh when will sheeee retuuuurn from the dreeeeeam land because I am so so so so SO so so sooooooo--" She jammed on her ukelele for a while before groaning, "BORED." 

It wasn't that she didn't want Chase to get her rest -- she definitely did with all the work that she'd been doing -- but she had stayed home to spend time with her, and she was still waiting on her to wake up.

It took another half hour and three songs about the window's lopsided curtain and their lack of peanut butter in the pantry before someone got home. 

"JJ, oh my goood thank god you've come home!" Sophie all but jumped from the couch, greeting her friend enthusiastically. "Oh -- uhm, thank you? Hello? Why are you so happy to see me?" She asked, eyeing Sophie with suspicion. "I swear if you and Chase are trying to prank me --"

"Nooooo I'm not!" Sophie insisted, "I'm just bored, I've basically been alone all day. But how was yours?" 

"It was fine, got some composing work done and went over a few scripts for our vareity appearance next week. I'm really excited about it!" JJ said, "But is Chase really still sleeping?"

"Yeah, since 3 AM when we stopped talking and she finally saved her work." Sophie shook her head, sighing. JJ also sighed, "Well, I guess I understand. She's been basically working and up all night with Suga's mix tape, working on composing and lyrics with me and Sang Mi, and doing special work for pretty much everyone who asks." 

"True, but I really wanted to hang out with her..." Sophie was disappointed, but she shook it off. It wasn't like Chase meant to sleep the day away, she just needed rest. It happened. "So you've done work all day, how about something fun?" 

"Ooooh, how about another round of verus in one of the video games?" JJ jumped for the opportunity to relax and have fun.

"I will Mario Kart your !" Sophie claimed, pulling out the game and controllers. JJ grinned, "Oh, you're so on!"

The set up was relatively simple, and soon enough the two were picking their characters and designing their rides. "Oh my god, JJ, you're taking forEVER to pick your wheels, come on!" Sophie whined, having finished her Cat Costumed Waluigi in a Parasoled, Pirate Ship Kart five minutes ago. 

"I'm trying to pick the best traction for the Cup we're playing, shush." She finally selected, finishing her up with Princess Peach in her motorcyle. Before Sophie could ask which cup she wanted to do, JJ picked the Special Cup and began the start of the three races. 

"Nooooo Special Cup has Rainbow Road how dare you --- NO!" Sophie screeched as she already fell behind in the race by not paying attention. And thus the competition between the two began.

JJ and Sophie were actually quite competitive, especially with Mario Kart. It came to a point that in Bowser's Castle, JJ was literally pushing Sophie off the couch or making Princess Peach run Waluigi off the road just to get a place ahead. "Oh my god stop!! Play fair!!" Sophie laughed, pushing JJ back this time. JJ just laughed and continued her antics. Sophie stretched her feet into JJ's face, laughing as JJ cursed at her falling off the road. The final time around was the worst, with both of them throwing everything they had at each other in real life and in the game. In the end, Sophie was cheering as she actually managed to finish before JJ. 

"It's not over yet, there's still Rainbow Road!!" JJ pointed out, and once again the two settled in to play. It was the same antics, but it was easier for JJ to get ahead of Sophie. "I suuuuck at this road, this is not fair!" She complained as she fell off the third turn in the first lap. JJ laughed as she began her second lap, "Man, it feels good to win."

At this point, Sophie was just trying to at least get on the same lap as JJ, even managing to get a Blue Shell and throwing it, getting JJ and throwing her off a place. "Ooooh you did not!" JJ gasped as she watched the shell come out of nowhere and completely knock her character off the turn she was in. 

"Oooh I just did and it was beautiful! Revenge is --- No Wailuigi stop!!" She screeched as she once again fell off the road.

In the end, JJ won and the dorm was filled with her cheering and loud ukelele music being started up again. "JJ is a CHEEEEEEEATER and HAAAAATES to LOOOOOOOSE~" Sophie crooned, making her older friend laugh. 

"You're such a sore loser, Sophie!" JJ rolled her eyes, going to get something from the fridge. "I'm ignoriiiing you because I'm perfooooooorming!!!" Sophie sang, continuing her song of woe and sadness. JJ came back with two glasses of water, "Hush and drink up, that was so not good for our voices." Sophie sat up, grabbing the glass and gulping some of it down. "Thank you JJ but I'm still biiiiiitter~" She sang, hanging back off the couch as she played.

The TV remained on the winning lap of JJ's for a few minutes longer, with JJ scrolling her phone on social media and Sophie still making up her songs. A ringtone caught their attention and JJ looked over at Sophie, who shook her head. 

"That's Chase's phone, but will it be enough to disturb her slumber?"

"If it's who I think it is, probably." JJ rolled her eyes as she saw the door open minutes later, a bed headed Chase stumbling out of the room, mumbling complaints to her phone that she had answered.

"Jesus do you know what time it is --" Chase began, rubbing her eyes and looking at her phone, "...Oh. Nevermind." The raspy laugh was enough to confirm the two's beliefs.

Sophie banged on a chord before shouting, "Hello Min Yoongi!!" Chase turned her phone to the two, showing that it was indeed Yoongi and he had Facetimed their group mate.
 

"Hi Sophie, Hi JJ." He greeted.

JJ didn't waste anytime keeping the two's attention, "If you're telling Chase to come over that's a no from me, dude."

"Yeah!" Sophie was quick to jump on the train, "It's her first real rest day in weeks. If you wanna see her that badly, come over here." At this point, Chase had made her way over and squeezed herself inbetween JJ and Sophie, still waking up from her long sleep.

"But I hate people." Yoongi responded, shrugging in the grainy image. That certainly woke Chase up, "Oh my god, did you seriously call just to get me to come over and tell me how much you hate people??"

Yoongi seemed a little taken aback, "I... I hadn't heard from you in a few days. I was worried."

"When do you not worry?" Chase rolled her eyes. Both JJ and Sophie made side eyes at each other. It was hard to tell if Chase was being sarcastic or if she was really peeved, and it seemed that they weren't the only ones confused. Yoongi didn't seem to know how to respond for a minute.

"Rude," He finally responded, seeming to take the comedy route, "See if I worry about you anymore."

It seemed to lessen the tension from Chase, who stuck her tongue out, "You'll always worry whether you want to or not, you just care that much~"

"You guys are so gross!!" Sophie gagged, going along with the routine. If Chase was really mad at Yoongi, she'd either go directly to him or she might tell her about it later.

"Shut up Sophie, You and Sungjae are literally the same way," JJ teased, making Sophie blush. "That's completely different!" 

"True, true." JJ smiled as Sophie tried to hit her with a pillow, causing Chase to duck and sit behind JJ to get out of Sophie's aim.

"Anyways," Chase shielded herself from JJ trying to move out of the way, "Bye Yoongs.... Unless you are going to come over?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Hmmmmmmm..." Was all she got out of the boy, and she rolled her eyes. "So that's a no then." 

"No it's not!" Yoongi insisted, "I'll come over one day."

"The day you come over is the day hell freezes over, Min Yoongi." Chase shot back. At this, Yoongi just huffs and hangs up, leaving the dorm in silence for a few minutes as JJ and Sophie tried to gauge Chase's mood. It was strange when she wasn't being upbeat, and they were concerned.

"Sooo what were you guys doing before Yoongi woke me up?" It was just like a switch, how fast Chase went from off to back on and being their happy little vitamin. Sophie furrowed her brow. She'd have to talk to Chase at some point about this.

For now, though, she wanted to not take it out on them, so Sophie would respect that. JJ seemed to have the same idea, commenting, "I'm surprised your phone woke you up but our screeching didn't."

Chase laughed, "Was it Mario Kart?"

"Yes and JJ cheated go and get revenge for me Chase!!!" Sophie proclaimed, throwing her controller to her roommate, who caught it clumsily and stared at the screen.

"...But I at this."

"Chase whyyyyyyy!"

WITH NAEUN...

Naeun was in an all too familiar and happy place, her coffee in one hand and her best friend across from her. Gigi was so excited that Naeun had some free time and they'd been meeting up every so often to just hang out like they used to. Right now, she was gushing about how she finally got a comeback approval from her company and would be releasing new music in the new year.

Naeun smiled, "i'm so happy for you! It'll be great to hear your music again, and I'm sure it'll do well!" Gigi gave her another bright smile before shaking her head, "Oh, gosh, I've been going on about this for so long now, enough about me. I'm actually pretty curious to know about something."

She leaned forward, "So have you been able to hang out with Myungsoo lately? I know last time we talked it seemed a little awkward, so I wanted an update."

Naeun let out a frusterated sigh, "No, not at all."

"Is he that busy?" Gigi asked. She took a sip of her own coffee while Naeun scoffed. "Of course not, he's doing the same thing that he's been doing lately -- awkward and with no good reason!"

"Really?" Gigi raised her eyebrows, "You two have never had this problem, though."

"Right?" Naeun was definitely not pleased about her current situation with her ex, but she sighed after her outburst, "Sorry, it's just... It's not easy. We both promised to be friends after the break up, but ever since I debuted he's been more paranoid and distant. It's so dumb, we haven't had any scandals and Chase all but sleeps in BTS' dorms, not to mention she's friends with GOT7 and Tina with N has never been an issue. AND Sophie and Clara -- Sophie and Sungjae have been caught but no one's said anything. Clara's over at Pledis all the time but fans just assume it's because of Jeonghan. I honestly can't think that if Myungsoo and I hung out that fans would hardly be surprised, we were close before and no one said anything either!" She complained.

Gigi listened to every word, nodding as she took in what her friend was saying. Once Naeun had finished, she waited for a moment, "Well, all men really are losers so could you expect a lot from him?"

Naeun snorted in laughter, "Good point, but still... Ugh. Gigi, you're so lucky you don't have any boy problems. Unless you kept something from me, which I'd like to think as your best friend you wouldn't!" Naeun side eyed her, and Gigi just laughed and stood up.

"Never would I ever keep something from you!" She claimed, taking her now empty cup and motioning for Naeun to follow, "Come on, let's go get noodles. My treat."

They walked down the streets, avoiding making eye contact with many people. While it wasn't necessarily a secret that Naeun and Gigi were friends, there was no need to cause anymore stress on them when they just wanted to see each other.

"Ah, I remember this place!" Naeun smiled as the two entered the small noodle place. Gigi looked happy as well, "I thought it'd be nice to come back here, it was always the best place when we were trainees."

They sat down and quickly ordered their old favorite dishes, before looking around the place to see what had changed since they'd last been here. "Remember when we'd come here after training and cry into our food because we were so tired?" Naeun sighed, watching the noodles come their way and being placed before them.

"Gosh yes," Gigi sighed, slipping her face mask off to start eating, "It was awful! But the noodles made it better."

"Yeah," Naeun picked up her own chopsticks, "But very worth it." Gigi slurped some noddles into , agreeing by nodding her head. The two ate in silence for a few minutes, before Naeun wiped .

"Anything new work-wise besides the comeback?" She asked, watching Gigi try to swallow to answer her question as fast as she could.

"I actually auditioned for a drama today, I'll hear back about it next week!" 

Naeun clapped, "That's so cool!"

"Yeah, what about you? I know half the group's promoting but --" Gigi started, letting Naeun eat some more before asking.

"Well, our full group comeback won't happen until next year since Clara has exams." Naeun explained, "But there's some endorsements that we're in talks for, it should be fun!" 

"Sounds like it! If it's food, it'll be even better because you get to eat that brand for free, right?" Gigi asked.

"Not sure," Naeun shrugged, "Oh! I was in a special stage of 'she is' with Jonghyun at his goodbye stages!"

Gigi leaned in, "Oooh! Did you get to be the star? I don't remember seeing you with Jonghyun?"

"I was just one of his backup dancers, but fans noticed and got a kick out of it!" Naeun pulled up the video, showing Gigi the stages she was in. The performance of White T- Shirt and She Is was great, as usual, but Gigi noticed her friend after it as brought up. "You added bangs! You rascal, no wonder I didn't notice you at first!" She teased, making Naeun laugh.

"Think they'll draft you for a backup dancer for the main promotion cycle?" Gigi asked. 

Another shrug from Naeun, "Maybe, Taemin thinks it'll be fun."

"Have you heard the song?"

"Yeah, I love it! It's so them." Naeun grinned at the mention of it and Gigi smiled. "Then you should do it! You said you were visiting them this week anyways."

"Well...." Naeun faltered, but ended up smiling all over again, "I'll just sneak that question in when I do see them."

This seemed to please Gigi, "Excellent!" She cheered, before going back to her meal. Naeun went back to finish hers as well. As soon as Gigi paid, she noticed the hour,

"Geez, I gotta get back so I can start concept ideas bright and early tomorrow! See you, text me when you get back, okay?"

"Okay," Naeun hugged the girl, "Thanks for hanging out with me, I really appreciate it, and I will!" She waved Gigi off before heading back to her dorms herself. It was a quiet ride, she was able to listen to her music and make sure that someone was home (seems like everyone was heading back around the same time, which was rare nowadays but Naeun was looking forward to it all the same) and soon enough, Naeun was on the walkway leading up to Woollim's dorm building.

"Oh, hey pretty princess." Now that voice plus that nickname made her stop in her tracks. She remembered her talk today with Gigi and took a deep breath. Maybe he had finally come to his senses? It'd be nice to have him around again.

"Hey Myungsoo," She turned to see him standing with a garbage bag in his hand. He must've lost again in rock, paper, scissors for chores. "It's been a while." She stated.

Myunsoo looked sheepish and shifted a little, "Yeah... How's your time off been?"

"Pretty good..." They stood there for a few minutes in silence staring at each other. Naeun took another deep breath and decided to take a shot. "Hey, are you --"

"Busy?" He finished, "Yeah... I am. Sorry." 

She sighed in annoyance, not surprised but irritated. "You know, we're not dating anymore. You don't have to be weird like this."

"I just don't want.... fans to get the wrong idea." Myungsoo tried, but it was the wrong thign to say. Naeun narrowed her eyes. "The fans or me?" 

That caught him off guard. He stumbled to find his words, "Naeun that's not --

She cut him off, "Of course it's not but you know what? This is so frustrating, I thought we'd still be friends. We said we would be, anyways."

"But we are --" Myungsoo couldn't catch a break right now, because now Naeun was on a roll and was ready to let him have it.

"But we're not! I keep asking to hang out and every time there's an excuse. Whether it's valid or not is none of my business, but I'm just --- I'm so done with it!" 

He seemed to have given up and looked sad, "Naeun, please..." 

"No!" Naeun felt her voice rise, as well as hot tears beginning to form at her eyes, "No. Don't... Don't please me. Myungsoo, we need to talk about this because obviously there's more to it than you're letting me know, and I just want to know why. I think I deserve that much."

"Princess you know why --"

"No I don't and that's what's infuriating!" She was sure she was a sight, her eyes turning red from the tears, her voice now at full volume, and poor Myungsoo looking lost, sad, and simply pathetic. But god, did Naeun feel good about getting this off of her chest.

"It's... complicated." Oh that was it. He's done it now.

"You did not just --- You did not just say that!!" Naeun screeched, running her hands through her hair.

"Princess, please --" He reached out, only to have her snatch her arm out of his grip and glare daggers at him. "No. No Princess, no more pleases. When you're ready to talk to me, and not give me these stupid excuses, we'll talk. Until then, stop trying to make small talk, it seems it always ends with us being angry at each other.

"Naeun!"

"Goodbye, Myungsoo." She didn't even let herself look back, running up the stairs to her dorm. She needed her friends right now.
 

AT 4XU'S DORM...

It'd been a while since the group was all together, and slowly but surely, everyone was coming together. Tina, Venus, and Krystal came back not too long after JJ and Chase began to battle on Mario Kart (and came in to Chase losing very, very badly). Krystal peeked her head in the room just enough to get Sophie's attention. She motioned for her to be quiet, to which Sophie surprisingly obliged to. "Oh my god, what a nerd!" Krystal loudly announced, in the most overdone California Valley Girl accent she could muster, causing JJ to immediately look up, "Krystal!!! You're here!" She stood up, immediately going to hug and greet her sister and recently returned friends.

Not even ten minutes after, Sang Mi and Clara arrived, with the younger going straight to the coffee table by the living room to start her homework. "I'll be there in a minute, Jinnie!" Sang Mi called, before turning her friends. "How's it going everyone?"

"Just got back, traffic okay?" Tina asked, and Sang Mi shrugged, "Same as always. No one can drive but at least it's consistent. Hey, Krystal! Been a while." 

Krystal waved, "Hey! I'd hug you but I'm sort of attached to another!" She joked, seeing as her sister was still hugging her. Sang Mi shrugged, "It's fine." She noticed the noise from the living room, "Hey... is Chase actually winning against someone in video games???"

"Oh my god, wait no!!!" JJ remembered her game as she heard the ending song, Sophie cheering and Chase just looking dumbfounded. "Does this even count?" She asked, and Sophie nodded, wrapping Chase's head in a hug. "Take it, it'll be the only time you could say you beat JJ in anything."

"Hey, I was thinking of making dinner for everyone, it seems like it'll be a full house plus one and it'd be nice to have it all together." Tina mentioned, putting her bag away and heading towards the kitchen. Krystal brightened, "I want to help!" and JJ followed, being the only other person who really knew how to cook and wanting to spend time with her sister. Venus went to take JJ's place in Mario Kart, and Chase all but shoved her controller at Sophie. "I'll leave this to the professionals." She claimed, watching the two customize their characters again before going to their game.

Sang Mi reluctantly stepped away from the kitchen, "I'd love to help, but I promised Jinnie help with her Math homework." 

"It's fine!" Tina insisted, "She needs to graduate, go help her do that!" She shooed her friend out of the kitchen before beginning to set everything up to cook.

As they waited for water to come to a boil, JJ and Krystal were pulling out side dishes for the table and they all chatted about their day.

"Yeah, I met up with Amber for a bit before my script reading." JJ mentioned, causing Krystal to raise an eyebrow. "Oh? Planning anything, dear sister of mine?"

"Nothing anytime soon," She pulled a container away from her sister, sticking her tongue out. "We did play around with some potentional compositions, but mostly i was helping her with a video. Nothing big. Tina, what about you? I feel like you've been gone since before we woke up this morning!" 

Tina smiled, "I was actually with Su-chin most of the day. I had an audition for a drama today!"

"Oh really? What kind of drama?" JJ asked, adding some seasoning to the water before Tina added the noodles. "It's a period drama, the results will be revealled next week!"

"And how'd you think you did?" Krystal asked, stacking plates for nine. Tina seemed excited to be talking about this, and she gave a shy shrug. "They said they liked me, so here's to hoping? It's such a good concept, I'd think it'd be a lot of fun!"

Venus suddenly came in, sitting herself on the opposite counter of the food. "Hi there little bean? What's up?" Tina asked, raising an eyebrow. Venus deadpanned, "Just use your ears."

They quieted down to hear Sophie's ukelele and her and Chase harmonizing about hunger and being deprived of food. "Do they... always do that?" Krystal asked, to which Venus groaned. "That and more, honestly. Give it five more seconds." Venus and JJ counted down on their fingers, pointing back to the living room as they heard Sang Mi's voice, "Shut up! Jinnie's math homework takes priority over your stomachs! Can't you feed yourselves anyways??"

Krystal burst into laughter, "All right. this is normal day then?" Tina nodded, "Sure is. It's chaotic, but we love each other." Krystal smiled. Just then, the door opened, signalling their final member had returned. "Naeun!" Chase sat up, grinning but faltering for a second. "Hey... Hey sweetie, what's wrong?" She immediately went over to her younger friend, who just looked up sadly, blinking tears away.

"I ran into Myungsoo just now...." And just as quick as that, everyone jumped into action, Tina grabbing ice cream and a spoon, Chase bringing her to the living room and everyone gathering there.

"Uhm?" Krystal leaned over to her sister. JJ leaned back, "Myungsoo and Naeun dated for like, three years and then broke up when it was announced she was going to re-debut. At first they were still pretty fine, good friends, but ever since 4xU has officially debuted, he's been super distant. It's really been bugging Naeun lately." 

"Poor thing... I can't imagine." Krystal knew a lot about Naeun already from her sister. As the best friend of the person originally betrayed the group, it couldn't have been easy coming back to the same girls and asking them to trust her. She didn't do anything wrong, but she must have gotten into a lot of fights with the others over her loyalty between the group and her friend... And now her group is messing up her friendship with her ex... It wasn't easy for Naeun right now. There was more to someone than you thought. Krystal scanned the room at the other seven girls, even her own sister. Everyone must be going through something right now, but they're all there for Naeun when she needs it... She sighed. They really were friends as well as group members.

"You okay to talk about it, Naeun?" Sang Mi asked gently. Naeun took a shaky breath. "I think so... I'm so sorry, this is so dumb --"

"No it's not -- well, I'm sure Myungsoo is, but you're entitled and validated in your feelings." Venus spoke up. Naeun smiled. "Thanks... Okay, so... It's so weird. I know i still like him, right? And I can tell he still likes me. But we decided to be friends after we broke up but... we won't talk about it. It's like he's avoiding it and it makes me wonder if there's more to it. I just don't get it, why can't he just talk to me?"

"....Boys are dumb." Sophie offered, making Naeun laugh. 

JJ rolled her eyes, "Yes, thank you Sophie. We can all say that." Sang Mi nodded, "Boys are dumb indeed. Seems like it runs in the band." She mentioned, hoping to get another laugh out of Naeun as she took another bite of ice cream.

"SangMi-unnie..." Naeun looked up to her leader, "Was this what is was like when you and Dongwoo broke up?"

Sang Mi stiffened a bit. Well, this was awkward. "Uhm... About that. There was definitely a bigger reason behind that and most importantly, he wasn't just being dumb like Myungsoo is being, he was being a complete ."

"If you don't mind us asking..." Sang Mi braced herself, "What was the bigger reason? We knew he was an , but you never really talked about it." Tina asked, and Sang Mi knew she was just trying to be sweet, as well as stop the group from keeping secrets, and make Naeun feel better. She sighed. They'd find out sooner or later, she should tell them before they find out in a way that's not from her.

"I guess I should tell you guys, it's only fair." Sang Mi knew they wouldn't judge her, but was this really the place? Was this really how she was going to come out to her group? It felt like it. "So the thing is that I'm --"

"HOLY ." 

Sang Mi's head whipped over, her hands immediately covering Clara's ears. "Chase, language!!"

Chase waved her phone around, obviously blown away, "Uhm I'm sorry but???? We're nominated for #1 this week??????"

....

"HOLY ."

UPLOADED/SHARED ON SEVENTEEN's INSTAGRAM, TWITTER, ETC.:

' [SVT JEONGHAN/JINSOL] Aigoo~ our precious 14th member came to be with us today! she's getting so pretty and big now, don't you think? Love you and study hard everyone! Carats, Dino, Jinsol, take care of yourselves as school is nearing its end! You can do it!'

FAN/IMPORTANT COMMENTS:

drumpumpum_csm_4xU: So THERE'S where our little maknae wandered off to! I was wondering where my little one was when she said she didn't need me to pick her up ~~~ have fun and remember to call JJ tonight to check in! <3 

CaratSoneEXOLARMY: she's precious!!!! thank you for the encouragement, you can do it jinsol and dino! hope to see you graduate in the spring :) 

sillytrinny99: she's grown so much from the first showcase already??? she looks so much more confident! <3 the yoon siblings ~~

baekyoonhye_dt: thank you for the support before exams jeonghan-oppa TT^TT i hope jinsol and dino do well too, let's end our high school careers on a high score!

errydaydapteen: sorry jeonghan but ur sister is ugly and she doesn't even do that well in 4xU -- actually the group in general doesn't do that well but everyone knows that. tell us about the next album instead!!!!

(saythename_17 has BLOCKED errydaydapteen)

---

Posted on SOPHIE's instagram:

'jj and i were having a great time until @chaseadventures93 woke up and decided to join us'

FAN/IMPORTANT COMMENTS: 

twinkletownkiwi: soooo cute!!! love you girls ~~ come to new zealand soon! :D

whistle4xU: omg chase can't ever not be in people's posts huh??? 

chaseadventures93: @WithLoveSophie uhm excuse you rude??? you know i made your day you little kiwi!!!

yook_can_do_it: Why didn't you invite me??? D: 

drumpumpum_csm_4xU: @chaseadventures93 hahahahahaha good joke. making people's day is the last thing you do!

chaseadventures93: OH MY GOD WHY IS EVERYONE IN OUR BAND RUDE TO ME i'll just go hang out with @yook_can_do_it then!!!

WithLoveSophie: @chaseadventures93 @yook_can_do_it TA AND ALL GOOD NOW LEAVE ME ALONE!!! @drumpumpum_csm_4xU understands me TT^TT

Author's Note
IT'S BEEN SO LONG I'M SO SORRY UGH -- I've been very busy trying to balance my two applyfics, but after reveals are done for that, I should be able to balance more and get on track! I wanted to write something about the smol girls this time around, but not without giving a nod to the hard working older members! Also I hope the length made up for the really long wait even though i'm not sure how well i did omg i'm so sorry ;;  (also yook_can_do_it is yook sungjae's official insta i dIED what a cutie loser) IDYLL 03. and focus on love interests will definitely be happening within the few chapters, DEFINITELY look forward to the vareity appearances by IDYLL !! I hope you guys enjoyed ~~