“Lee Seokmin, I swear to all things holy, if you don’t get out of my way, I’m throwing you off the railings.” I said through gritted teeth, barricading my face using the folder I have in my hand. “I need to give these grading sheets to the teachers now let me pass, you big doofus.”

The idiot kept smiling at me as if I am the biggest joke he has ever encountered in his life and still didn’t move from his position. “Are you already getting annoyed?” He inquired, his smile spreading even wider across his face. “And why are you hiding your face from me?”

I felt my ears starting to get red at his question because if he ever finds out why the hell I am playing hide and seek from him and s, they would never leave me in peace. “Just let me pass, for goodness’ sakes. Or else I’ll tell your teacher you’re out here loitering when you should be inside your classroom!” My threat sounded really lame and I know no amount of being reported to their respective advisers could ever make this group take anything seriously.

“Ei, Hyunjin ah~ You are no fun.” Seokmin sighed, shifting his body to the side. “I’m sorry if I irritated you. It’s just that we haven’t seen you much nowadays. The kids were wondering what has got you occupied. Are you sure you’re okay?”

My slight annoyance melted in a flash after hearing that. Geez, I miss these troublemakers, too. Sighing, I shook my head in response. “Not much. I have been really tired. With my internship here, my two other subjects’ requirements and other things to take care of before graduation, I hardly find time to even socialize. I am sure the guys can understand that.” I waved the folders in my hand. “This wasn’t supposed to be my job but I hate seeing my former teachers get stressed as well so I volunteered in giving their grading sheets.”

“Leave it to the too good intern Kang Hyunjin to help you out. I hope this institution would hire you after you graduate. Or maybe you can work in Pledis! We really need counsellors like you to look after us.” Seokmin’s eyes twinkled at the thought.

“I wish I could, Seokmin ah. But that occupation has DANGER written all over it.” I smiled before starting to walk away from him. “You better get back to class or you’ll find yourself in detention this afternoon!”

“Oh, before I forgot.” Seokmin said, looking at me with a soft expression on his face. “I want to apologize for the last time we saw other… You know, outside of your office with Hoshi hyung and Minghao? I am sorry about it-”

I smiled and ruffled his hair. (I tried to reach because I am a very short girl.) “Don’t be, okay? And sorry for screaming at you guys. Poor Minghao… My baby Minghao.” I cooed before walking away, waving at him goodbye with a smile.

As I descend down the steps with only one folder in my hand, I found myself thinking this: Why are the members of Seventeen keep bumping into me today? I thought it was just a random member seeing me along the corridor but if I have counted correctly, I have met 12 of the 13 members already. What’s up with them and roaming around the whole block, anyway?

Never in my life would I have imagined to see 13 diamonds walking around the campus of my former school, the School of Performing Arts in Seoul. Although I didn’t end up taking an art related course, I am very blessed to have been able to study in this school. They do bring out the best in their students and they don’t push us to do what they want us to do.

Being in the graduating batch of this year, my course requires us to have a total of 600 hours of internship in the three settings of the Psychology domain: Guidance and Counselling, Clinical, and Industrial Psychology. I opted to take Guidance and Counselling first because SOPA is near from where I live.

I am used to seeing young idols and actors studying in my Alma Mater. But let me tell you that out of all of them, Seventeen was the only group I really love to see. They are just so humble and down to earth. They treat everyone their friends and they don’t let their fame get into their head. The first time I saw them in the assembly hall where they introduced me as the Guidance Office’s intern, they look… Normal. Nothing about their whole group screams IDOLS when they are inside the school premises. I am not saying the other idols don’t look normal but they seem to blend in so perfectly with the ordinary students in there.

While the head guidance counsellor explained the schedules of the routine interviews and testing of each year level, I can easily see who are out of the ordinary. Mark Lee, Jeon Jungkook, Lee Donghyuck, Lee Jeno, and Na Jaemin are easily recognized as idols. They are not talking to anyone as if they’re afraid to be caught socializing. But when you scrutinize the crowd well even under the dim lights of the hall, you can see the members of Seventeen scattered around in different year levels. And they are not listening. They are chatting with classmates and I even saw Seungkwan playing rock, paper, scissors with a girl beside him along their line.

It’s a refreshing sight to see, if you’re going to ask me. Seeing them letting their walls down, being themselves and just being a student like everyone else in this school.

They got pretty close to me when I started conducting the routine interviews. I also realized that these boys are so hungry for someone to listen to what they want to talk about. Be it about school, politics, laws, their studies, their families, their problems… They share the most random things to me and I find that very endearing. I have grown protective of them even if some of them are older than me. After that, they would ask me to join them during lunch or recess. Sometimes, they would barge inside the office and stay there for their whole break time, asking me what I am doing or if I want to do something this weekend. Even if I am swamped with seminars and paper works to do, their occasional visits always put a smile on my face.

But of course, not all thirteen of them are that friendly.

One Chinese member seems to hide himself in the shadows of his group mates: Wen Junhui.

I can sum up his personality in one word. Mysterious. He doesn’t show much emotion and he rarely talks unless spoken to. His eyes would bore holes into your own and once you’ve started to drown in his brown orbs, he’ll look away with his expressionless face and walk away. Just like that.

When it was his turn to be interviewed, he is calm and talks in a very composed tone. He didn’t share much about himself but when I asked him about his family and his group, I saw his face light up a bit, a soft smile on his lips and started talking about how thankful he is for them.

That’s when I realized that he is the kind of man who would do anything for them even if he puts himself last. He brags himself to everyone in fansigns and fan meetings but deep inside, he wanted for these people to be his top priority over anything.

No wonder he attracts lots of older fans. He exudes this mature aura behind all those childish acts.

He still hasn’t been talking much to me even if we’re eating lunch together with some of their non-idol friends. Sometimes, he isn’t even with them and when I ask his co-members, they shrug. They don’t know where he is.

One busy and disastrous day in the office, Seokmin, Soonyoung and Minghao came bustling in and I almost screamed “YES WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP YOU TODAY.” I whipped my head up from my cubicle, arms loaded with filing folders and Psychological exams and Soonyoung’s first words were “I think I’m having a heart attack.”

Shooing all three of them outside of the office and calming myself as well, I look at them and apologized. “I am so sorry for frightening you guys. I am really not having the best time today.”

Soonyoung is still clutching his chest dramatically and leaning by the wall. Minghao patted his back for added effect. “You guys aren’t helping me so if you won’t tell me why are you here, I’m calling your class advisers.” I crossed my arms over my chest.

“Ya, hyung. Hyunjin is busy! Go and tell her. And I don’t want to spend my afternoon inside Ms. Han’s office watching The Perks of Being a Wallflower!” Minghao shook his hyung’s shoulder to quit his acting.

“Why me? Seokmin was the one who told me he has suspicions! I am here for support.” Soonyoung defended himself, shoving Seokmin’s shoulder. “Tell her.”

Seokmin shook his head in disbelief, leaving me confused. “I never should have told you both.”

“Tell them what? Tell me what? What’s happening?” I said, hating how I am so clueless.

I saw them communicate with their eyes, Soonyoung giving Seokmin the death glare. Minghao stared at the two of them and pointed at Seokmin before pointing his finger to my direction.

“Fine, fine.” Seokmin groaned in defeat. The two stepped back and let Seokmin stay beside me. He draped his arm around my shoulders and exhales audibly. “Now, Hunjin ah. What I am to tell you is just my assumption, okay? Nothing has been proven and I swear to God, if Jun hyung found out I started this crap, he would run after my with a wushu stick, beating me into a pulp once he caught me.”

“Jun hyung? Junhui? What he got to do with all these?”

“He has everything to do with these, Hyunjin ah. Because I think Jun hyung likes you.”

My mind went blank at Seokmin’s words.

Junhui? Wen Junhui? Wen Junhui? Likes me? How?

This is more baffling than the student I counselled a while ago for allegedly trying to burn the school down.

“I think we broke her, Seokmin ah.” Minghao commented, waving his palm in front of my eyes. “Hyunjin ah?”

I shrugged Seokmin’s arm off of my shoulders, my head still swimming with the new found information. “Wait a minute. How the hell come up with this conclusion? The guy doesn’t even look my way and now you’re saying he likes me? No, nope, nopety nope.”

They were about to say something but I shook my head and get back inside the office, leaving them outside.

Sitting back down on my chair, I stared at the pile of papers in front of me.

“WHAT THE HECK.” I fumed and started to stack the folders, making my way to the testing room.

My mind is still in denial after I heard those words from Junhui’s friends. Sure, he doesn’t talk to me much but Seokmin’s convicting tone just won’t leave me alone.

I almost bumped into a wall near the Science Department’s door while being in deep thought. Composing myself, I knocked on the department’s door and gave the remaining folders in my hand.

I waved goodbye to my former teachers in the department and I was thinking of what to eat for lunch when my eyes caught the figure of a certain black haired man going down the stairs.

“Oh, crap-” I whispered to myself and made a run for the stairs, afraid of him seeing me at the wrong place at the wrong time.

With a tight grasp on my arm, I found myself cornered to the wall by the landing of the first and second floor, face to face with Wen Junhui.

And just like what I have been doing all day everytime I see a member of Seventeen, I covered my face with my hands and shrieked “Don’t come close to me! You’re so handsome!”

As much as stupid as it sounds, those were the only words that are running inside my head once I take a single glance at their almost perfect faces. But this is the only instance I blurted it out.

Of all the thirteen members of their group, I got to be face to face with the person who’s responsible for my aloofness.

I heard him chuckle and my nose was assaulted by his manly fragrance, making me lightheaded at the scent. I slowly lowered my hands until it doesn’t cover my face any longer.

Junhui is staring at me with such interest, like a predator watching his prey carefully, afraid for it to escape. A rush of blood made its way to my cheeks and I can feel my skin burn.

“W-w-what do you want, Mr. Wen?” I asked, standing a bit straighter. His hands are still at the either side of my head that makes evasion really impossible. “Do you have any concern-?”

“Why have you been avoiding me, Hyunjin?”

His words hit me like cold water, freezing me on the spot. My throat felt dry and my hands started to get clammy from nervousness. Why am I nervous? It’s just Junhui! He’s one of my students, for God’s sakes!

But my mind can’t seem to function enough to construct a single sentence so I ended up looking back at him and say “What are you talking about?”

He smirked and inched his face closer to me, leaving about few centimetres away from mine. “I asked you a question, Hyunjin. Why have you been avoiding me? Don’t you like seeing me here anymore, mhm?” His voice dropped an octave lower, sending shivers down my spine. His hand moved from the side of my face until it landed on my cheek. His smirk got wider, his thumb gently caressing my skin. “Well? I’m waiting.”

My knees are wobbling at this point and I can’t think straight. His heavenly scent, his electrifying touch, his deep voice… They are all drowning me into sensations I can’t even describe.

“No answer? That’s a shame, Ms. Kang.” He said, his beautiful lips moving up and down as he utters those words.

Then I realized he is closing the space between us, leaning even more to me.

Once I can feel my toes and feet coming back to life, I run away from that dangerous man before his luscious lips land on mine and found the refuge I am seeking after slamming the door of our office, literally throwing myself on the guest couch.

Mrs. Lee peered her head from her cubicle, confused at why was I rushing inside. “Hyunjin ah. Why do you look so flustered? Something happened while you’re out?”

I didn’t even notice it but my lip curved up into a soft smile, my cheeks still tinged pink. “Nothing special, ma’am,” I replied and swallowing the giddy feeling before going back to my table to type up some reports.

When I got home to review what I have typed, the document is full of Junhui’s name.