Earlier in the day, the boys had had a fanmeet in Doojoon’s hometown. Just before it started, Junhyung was heading towards the stage when he accidentally bumped into a girl, whom he estimated to be sixteen or seventeen. “Oh, sorry,” she immediately blurted, bowing in apology, looking up as their eyes met for only a moment just to look down at her feet again. He just stared at her as they stood there awkwardly. Odd, he thought, there shouldn’t be any fans here, this is backstage. And I don’t think she could be working here. Pushing his thoughts aside, he muttered a “please be careful next time” and watched as she hurried away. Yet she looks so familiar.

He didn’t see her again during the fanmeet, but he spotted her walking out afterwards. Again he felt that he should know her, but he couldn’t think why. Shrugging it off, he followed the rest as they piled into the van and headed for Doojoon’s house. Their schedule allowed them to spend the night there, which was pretty rare for idols.

Doojoon’s parents greeted them warmly and entertained them for a short while before getting on with their usual activities. His younger sister, Haneul, appeared only for a short while to greet them with a timid and quiet voice, then disappeared into her room. Eventually they moved their laughter and games from the living room to the guest room. The whole time, Junhyung was thinking about the girl he had bumped into. There was something about her that made him want to smile...

***

“Junhyung... Junhyungie...” Doojoon shook his friend, calling his name softly, trying not to wake his sister in the process.

“Huh? Oh, sorry.”

Junhyung’s mind immediately returned to reality. He must have been zoned out for a while, judging by the fact that Hyunseung was no longer next to Dongwoon, Yoseob was standing at the door, and Kikwang was done exploring the room.

“What’s wrong with you? You okay?” Doojoon asked, concerned. Junhyung waved him away and nodded, walking away. “Let’s all go back,” Doojoon whispered to the rest, and they followed after Junhyung, Doojoon giving his sister one last glance before closing the door behind him.

***

Junhyung woke up when it was still dark. Putting on his glasses and checking his watch, he saw that it was about 4 in the morning. They were supposed to wake up at 7 and leave, as they had to go to the dorm and pick up some things before they continued with their schedule. He got up, realised that he had taken the place closest to the door, and, not thinking straight, immediately sneaked out.

He felt his way to the room next door, remembering clearly that that’s where Haneul’s room was. He didn’t know why, but he had to sudden urge to talk to her, to straighten things out. It was her. He knew it. At least, he knew it was her he had bumped into. So she was Doojoon’s sister; that would explain her being in the out-of-bounds area. Doojoon had mentioned she was shy, so that accounted for him not seeing her elsewhere. He entered the room quietly, calmly walking over to the sleeping teen and sitting on the floor beside her bed, facing her. It had to be her. Even looking at her now made his heart float a little. He didn’t know how that was relevant, but it seemed to be at the time. They needed to talk, but he couldn’t bring himself to wake her. She looked so peaceful in her sleep, so innocent, so beautiful…

Wait, what?

Junhyung shook his head vigorously. What was he thinking?! This was Doojoon’s sister, whom he protected fiercely. His precious little sister. There was no point in falling for this girl. Besides, the reason why he didn’t want to wake her up because he barely knew her… what would she think of him sneaking into her room, much less waking her up at such a time? He leaned back, watching her sleep, his heart pumping a little louder than usual. Was he nervous? He shouldn’t be here…

 “…Oppa??”

Junhyung nearly jumped out of his skin. He’d woken Haneul. Damnit, you idiot, you were too loud. Keep calm, keep calm, he scolded himself, sitting up and looking at her. Her eyes were the same deep brown as he remembered, and they shined as they looked into his.

“Eh, sorry to wake you, Haneul,” he smiled embarrassedly, scratching his head. “I, uh, this might sound weird but…” He silently took a deep breath and decided to get on with it.

“Do you remember a lonely guy at the playground swings, a long time ago?”