The Fall semester marked everyone’s return to Balgwang University, and the first official meeting for Crescendity. The one week holiday may have seem rather short to several students, but to others, they were ready to enslave themselves through project assignments.   “Wow, this came out really well!” Rika squealed upon receiving the A3 photo of Lee Jangjun’s face. “But why did you have to print it out this big? It makes me little uncomfortable knowing this picture is gonna watch me sleep.”   Myungsoo smiled, watching her look of amazement turn into a horrified expression within the blink of an eye. “You seemed so excited about the photo, I wanted to give you the best,” he said.   To anyone else, the words could imply a different meaning. But to Rika, no matter how much her heart fluttered or how elated she felt, she knew he meant it as a friend.   “Just so you know, I am excited about this gift because it’s from you, and because you took the picture, not because of the model. Not because of Jangjun. Jangjun is stupid. Potatoes are cooler,” she emphasized, unwilling for him to have the wrong perception.   Myungsoo laughed. As long as he could help her out with her semester project, he was content. It still had a long deadline, but apparently Rika may have to draw more than one person.   “If you need me to take more photograph of others, I'd be ready at your service anytime,” Myungsoo said, lightly patting her back as they walked down the hallway.   Ah, the privilege of a friend. It made Rika feel sad and happy at the same time. Look at the way he so casually placed his hand on her shoulder. Any girl would kill to take her place, not knowing that crossing the friendzone was as impossible as surviving the black hole alive. If only she could have a clean slate, she’d take it.   “Won’t you be busy though? Considering you joined choir club,” Rika asked.   “I don’t know yet. The official first meeting is today.”   “Seulyi didn’t forget to invite you this time?” Rika asked, trying her best to chuckle as earnestly as possible. Putting the two in one sentence ached her heart, let alone putting them in the same room. Maybe she should join the club after all. Not that she’d try to put them apart, but just to have her own heart break into a million pieces.   “Well, Woohyun told me the meeting was today,” Myungsoo said, passing by the said guy’s class right at the moment. He didn’t realize the slow pace he started walking when noticing a familiar petite figure in front of the classroom. What was Hyunmi doing there?   “Anyway, thanks for this. I’ll make sure to do my best, so I won’t fail you too,” Rika said, fake crying at the upcoming stress she’ll face as she held unto Jangjun’s face.   “You won’t fail me. You never do,” Myungsoo said, bidding her farewell before he averted his eyes to the scene again. He was about to approach the lonesome girl when the classroom door opened. When his friend appeared, Myungsoo halted.   “Hi.”   Woohyun nearly jumped up in shock, surprised to see Hyunmi waiting in front of his class. She had a guiltless smile on her face, but he knew better by now than to trust her sweet facade. “What do you want?” he asked, beginning to walk. She immediately followed him, unaware of her surrounding.   “I’m making sure you’re not running away. We have a club meeting right now,” she reminded with a singsong voice.   He scoffed, unable to comprehend why she needed him to be in the club so badly. So he halted abruptly, turning to Hyunmi who nearly bumped into him if she hadn’t stopped in time. “I don’t know what kind of perception you have of me, but I am a man of my words. I don’t break promises,” he said, hoping she wouldn’t tire herself out waiting for him next time.   “Ah, that would be reassuring in a relationship,” Hyunmi bobbed her head thoughtfully, echoing what he had once told her before.   He held back his urge to chuckle at that. “Don’t misunderstand. I simply enjoy the look of loss on your face, especially when I am the cause of it,” he taunted back, but she wasn’t taking any of his baits.   “Oh Woohyun, we both know you have a weakness. All I have to do is fake my tear and—”   “No,” he interrupted her, his gaze turning serious. “My intention was never to hurt you. I don’t wanna be the reason for your tears.”   Hyunmi was silenced at once, the playfulness stripped away from her face. She blinked several times, trying to adjust her heart to the situation, not expecting it to react to his words. She couldn’t help but think it was quite romantic, but dismissed the thought as they entered the practice room.   Nearly all seats in the room were occupied, surpassing the number of members expected. There were several new faces, meaning they managed to reel in more members without the use of briberies. Among them was Kim Kibum who diligently appeared to their meetings despite not being a club member. Both Woohyun and Hyunmi decided not to call him out on it, knowing it will only drive him away. So they took a seat among the available space, greeting Myungsoo who appeared not long after.   Heejin for one was extremely surprised to see one particular familiar face. Despite Chanyeol’s current absence, his roommate, guy number 34, was seated on one of the chairs. Was it her imagination or did his eyes flicker in delight once she walked into the room?   “Broccoli girl,” he called out, clearly meant for her.   Out of reflex, Heejin wanted to run away again. But she couldn’t. Not this time. Not when he had suddenly gotten up from his seat to grab her by her arm. She didn’t even know why she tried to escape when he already declared getting an A for his class.   “It’s time for a proper introduction. Maybe that way you won’t run away anymore,” Minseok said, chuckling to himself when she began to stammer.   “I- I didn’t run away. I just…” Heejin sighed. Who was she kidding? She had always been the worst at lying and making up excuses. “Sorry, I promise I won’t run away once I actually get to know you. It’s just that I was really scared, so my feet started acting on its own.”   “That’s understandable,” Minseok said, suddenly extending his hand out. “Now for a proper introduction, I am Kim Minseok.”   Heejin bit her lower lip, staring at his hand. They looked so soft and healthy. She wondered what kind of lotion he was wearing. Maybe she should get one for herself later. But this was only their first meeting, she couldn’t possibly ask him that for now.   “I’m Song Heejin, but you can call me whatever is easier for you,” she said.   “Broccoli girl sounds cute. It fits you,” Minseok said, smiling at her with a sense of relief. He was simply glad she wasn’t running away from him again. Considering his reputation as Mr. Nice Guy among the seniors, he couldn’t stand any junior being intimidated by his presence.   “So, uuhm… Why are you here, 34, I mean Minseok?” Heejin shook her head, correcting herself to say his name instead of what she had always referred to him to. He was surprisingly friendly, and she had to get accustomed to this image instead of the one she had created in her head.   “Chanyeol asked me to tag along. We don’t have any soccer practice since our captain is here anyway,” Minseok said, cocking his head to Woohyun’s direction who seemed to laugh at whatever Seulyi was saying.   “Oh, so it’s like a trial period?” Heejin asked. Again, she surprised herself at how easy it was to talk to him. He had this friendly aura that compelled her to open up to him. She still did her best to hold back most of her thoughts, not sure Minseok was ready to receive her random train of ideas.   “Yeah.” Minseok kept smiling which almost made Heejin lose her current thoughts. Now that was a phenomenon that had never happened before.   “W-well, I hope you decide to stay. We would love to have new members,” Heejin told him, flashing her sweet smile. She may not have her cousin’s sweet talking—also known as bribery or manipulation—skills, and depended purely on being nice and authentic. “Plus, it will actually be really fun. I’m sure you’d like it.”   “If you say so, I’ll hold you to that,” Minseok said, still grinning.   Heejin couldn’t help feeling her lips shape into a smile when he gave her that gaze. He was such a nice person, she was certain of. But before she could make other observations, Chanyeol entered the room, and everyone turned silent, petrified.   Chanyeol wore a fancy grey suit resembling a rich multinational CEO—which would’ve been more convincing if the price tag wasn’t sticking out from his collar. His hair was styled backwards using lots of gel, which despite being greasy, made him look more mature. Plus, he wore glasses to increase the elegance in his appearance.   “Chanyeol?” Minseok was the first to ask, not expecting his roommate to undergo an America’s Next Top Model style makeover when he was told to go on ahead.   “Good day, sir,” Chanyeol said, maintaining a poised tone that did not fit him.   Heejin was equally surprised to see him, even if she had known of his plan. This was the reason why he had asked her to go shopping, because he needed a more mature wardrobe change. She laughed at the sight, finding it quite adorable.   “I think Chanyeol is broken. You should fix him,” Maerin said, nudging to Yerin.   Knowing she was the only one who could fix this weird phenomenon, Yerin got down from her chair, standing in front of Chanyeol with squinted eyes. The smell of his gel was so strong she wrinkled her nose in response—why would anyone make pineapple scented hair gels?   “I am so confused I don’t even know where to start,” she said.   “That is certainly most definitely quite okay. This is a venture to rebrand myself,” Chanyeol said, keeping his lips in a straight line, not smiling once. He thought he selected the fanciest and smartest vocabulary one could find in a thesaurus, but it made him harder to understand.   “Why would you do that?” Yerin asked, tilting her head sideways, wondering if she should start worrying about him.   “You uttered you do not like immature men compared to grown up adults,” Chanyeol said in a fancy tone, sounding oldish. He fixed the glasses on the bridge of his nose like smart people would.   “I’ll prove to you I can be mature too. I won’t lose to him.”   Yerin frowned as Chanyeol took a seat. Him? There was a him? The only guy she had ever gotten close to was Chanyeol, and considering how often he declared themselves as a couple, she doubted any other eligible bachelors would try to approach her.   With impeccable timing, Leeteuk appeared into the classroom, halting any of the ongoing drama. He nearly jumped up when seeing Chanyeol’s unusual appearance, thinking the student wanted to seem proper for their first ever meeting. It made him feel special as a teacher.   “What a nice day it is to be starting our first lesson,” he said, staring at the new faces with beaming pride. They seemed to have established quite a solid group based on numbers alone. “First of all, I’d like you all to applaud yourselves for a job well done during club day. The performance got quite some praise. We even got a few new members.”   Everyone applauded, cheering for themselves and the entire group.   “But I see Mira is missing?” Leeteuk continued asking, having memorized names and faces rather than looking at an attendance list.   “She hasn’t been feeling so well and is resting,” Biah answered, having met Mira in the hallways earlier in the afternoon. She was on the way back to the dorm room to get a rest.   “Mira has been down ever since