The day of the most anticipated midsummers ball had finally dawned upon the students of Rose Academy. The committee members were buzzing about, decorating the school's hall for the ball. The theme of the ball this year was the spring waltz. Following the theme, the commitee had flowers flown in directly from overseas to match. The flowers were used to decorate the entire hall and the entrance. Eunbi was the busiest of them all, having to deal with the caterers, DJ's and enforcing the safety measures for the event. Sakura on the other hand was in charge of decorations which meant she had to make sure all the flowers arrived on time and placed right. Lights above them were chosen accordingly so it would match the theme and highlight the flowers. She smiled with content once she saw the finished product. Tonight was going to be fun. 

Neither of them knew that hearts were going to be broken by the end of the night. It was indeed the calm before the storm. 

~~~~~~~~~

Within the four walls of Hana's bedroom, the F4 members were busy preparing for the ball tonight. The F4 members agreed to prepare at Hana's house hence turning Hana's room into a full on dressing room. Stylists were busy trying to match each of the girl's personal styles to their outfits while hair and makeup artists were running around, their hands moving at the speed of light to beautify the girls. Hana was slowly getting sleepy after trying at least 20 pieces of suits. Hyewon was no better, her eyes were barely opened and she was starving but she couldn't eat while the makeup artist was working on her face.

Yujin and Chaeyeon on the other hand were fired up. They hadn't stop picking out suits since they arrived at 12 pm, going through each brand and different colours to choose the most suitable one. After 4 hours and 100 suits later, they finally settled on a tux each. Yujin opted on a red Valentino plaid tux, Chaeyeon went with a black embroidered Gucci tux, Hyewon opting for a classic grey Brioni tux and Hana chose a navy blue Armani tux. Finally, at 5, they were finish with everything as the stylists and hair and makeup artists packed up, leaving the room after Hana handed them a check, thanking them for their hard work. 

The F4 members were now left alone in the room, waiting for the time to leave. Yujin's face had been stuck to her phone screen the whole day, smiling happily as she giggled at something Wonyoung sent her. She couldn't wait to see her beautiful girlfriend, it was giving her butterflies but she was sure it was worth the wait. Hyewon, Hana and Chaeyeon on the other hand wore gloomy expressions on their face. Chaeyeon's enthusiasm fading as time passed when she realised she would be going alone. Hyewon on the other hand hadn't talked to Miru since that day, not able to muster up the courage to do so and Hana wasn't even thinking about attending until Eunbi asked her. 

"I can't wait to see my Wonyoung. I bet she looks amazing!" Yujin spoke up, her voice dripping with honey as she squealed, covering her reddening face. 

The other three girls rolled their eyes simultaneously. 

"We get it, Ahn Puppy. You're in love" Hana says with a slight annoyance in her tone. 

"Don't need to rub it in all our single faces" Hyewon spoke next, clicking her teeth.

Chaeyeon maintained her silence though her face was visibly annoyed as well. 

"Geez, guys! Don't hate me cause you ain't me!" Yujin says as multiple pillows were flung in her direction.

"If you don't wish to have an assassin knocking on your door in the middle of the night, I suggest you hold your tongue, Ahn Yujin" Hana says threateningly. 

Yujin gulps as she holds her hands up in submission, laughing nervously. She knew Hana meant what she said and when she says she's sending assassins, it's best to apologise and hope she doesn't keep to her promise. Hana waves Yujin off, leaning her back against the couch as she played with her phone, scrolling through her social media feed while Hyewon concentrated on shooting zombies on her phone and Chaeyeon rested her head on the couch, suddenly feeling tired. A knock on the door alerted the four of them as the butler opens the door, walking in and bowing. 

"Milady, the limousine is ready for you." 

"Okay, we will head down soon. Thank you, Butler So." 

The butler then leaves, not forgetting to bow as he hurries out of the room. Yujin is first to leave the couch, stretching as she beamed at the F4 members. 

"Let's go!" 

The other three got up from their seats begrudgingly as they followed behind a chirpy Yujin, walking down the steps as they arrived in the beautifully decorated foyer. The house staff bowed as the butler held open the door for them to exit the house - the limousine already waiting for them at the bottom of the steps. The driver spotted Yujin and the remaining F4 members coming down the steps as he rushed to pull open the car door for them. Yujin slid into the car, followed by Chaeyeon and Hyewon, Hana went last as she shot the driver a grateful smile before getting into the car. The driver closed the door, moving towards the driver's seat as he started the engine, receving orders from Hana to leave. 

They stopped by Wonyoung's house to pick her up. Yujin acting as a gentlewoman, stepped out of the car and waited for Wonyoung. The said girl descended the steps of her house, coming into full view, smiling widely when she saw Yujin waiting for her. Yujin froze when she saw Wonyoung, everything faded in the background and at that moment, Wonyoung was all she saw. She only broke out of her trance when Wonyoung stood in front of her, waving her hand in front of Yujin's frozen face. 

"---Hello!" Yujin blurted out. 

Wonyoung giggled, "Hi, Ahn puppy!" 

Yujin stares at Wonyoung with wide open. She was pretty sure she died and went to heaven because there was no way an angel like Wonyoung existed on this Earth. 

"Oi, Ahn Yujin! Are you going to just stand there looking at her with your mouth open or you going to ask her in?" Chaeyeon yelled from inside the car.

Yujin turned around, shooting Chaeyeon a glare before turning back to Wonyoung, flashing her a smile. She stepped aside, allowing Wonyoung to enter the car first. Yujin followed after Wonyoung, sliding in beside her, smiling happily as she reached over to hold Wonyoung's hand. 

"We would have taken another car if we knew the two of you would be all lovey dovey in our faces" Hana speaks but there was no anger in her tone, mostly teasing. 

Wonyoung blushed as she hurriedly tries to retract her hand but Yujin had a tight grip and by the look on Yujin's face, she wasn't planning on letting go any time soon. 

Hana breaks out into a small giggle, "I'm just kidding! Don't take it to heart, Wonyoung. I'm glad someone finally tied that puppy down."

The other F4 members except Yujin snorted as they began to laugh as well. 

"HEY!" Yujin screamed, pouting like a child which made Wonyoung smile. 

Wonyoung's cheeks began to hurt from smiling, she wanted to have what the F4 members had. Such a solid friendship. One that was supportive and filled with teasings and laughter. She never really had that growing up. Because of her grades and her looks, most people thought of her as their rival and even the people she hung out with before were never genuine about their intentions towards her. Despite her background, they treated her like an equal and Yujin, Wonyoung sighs. Ahn Yujin.

She never meant to fall for the heiress, in the start, to Wonyoung, Yujin was nothing more than a spoiled and entitled girl who got everything she wanted and never had to work a day in her life for it. Then, she started to get to know Yujin behind all the confidence and the pretense and she fell, boy, did she fall hard. The real Ahn Yujin was sweet, beautiful, thoughtful and she had a childish side to her but it made Wonyoung's heart flutter to no end. There was so many sides to Yujin and Wonyoung wanted to know every side. Yujin notices Wonyoung's intense stare on her as she tilts her head, frowning. 

"Why are you staring at me like that? Is there something on my face?" Yujin questions. 

Wonyoung breaks her stare, shaking her head as she flashed Yujin a small smile. Yujin nodded, deciding not to question Wonyoung as the two looked ahead. It wasn't long before the limousine pulled up in front of the hall's main entrance. A valet pulled open the car door allowing Wonyoung and Yujin to step out first as they linked arms and walked ahead of the F4 members. One after another, the three F4 members slid out of the limousine and joined Wonyoung and Yujin, gathering everyone's attention. They walked through the doors into the hall, their eyes scanned the hall, opening their mouth in awe. The committee did an excellent work this year, they really put a lot of effort. 

Hana's phone vibrated as she took it out and saw that it was Eunbi. 

"I need to go find Eunbi. I'll see you guys later" Hana announces, waving before she walked through the dance floor in search of Eunbi. 

Hyewon and Chaeyeon were immediately swarmed by the other students in hopes that they could get a chance to dance with them. Yujin pulled Wonyoung away from them, ignoring their pleas as they arrived at the buffet table. Yujin handed Wonyoung a plate and took one for herself before beginning to scoop what she liked onto her plate. 

"Are you it's okay to leave Chaeyeon and Hyewon sunbae alone?" Wonyoung asked, worried about the F4 members. 

"Oh, I'm sure they'll be fine. They are used to all the attention. I'm sure they won't die" Yujin says, her eyes never leaving the food in front of her. 

Yujin wondered why Wonyoung was silent as she finally peered behind her to see a frowning Wonyoung.

Yujin uses her free hand to hold Wonyoung's hand, bringing the girl's attention towards her. 

"They'll be fine, babe. They can take care of themselves so you have nothing to worry about" Yujin says sweetly. 

Wonyoung nods, blushing when she realised what Yujin had called her, "--B..Babe! Did you just-" 

Yujin breaks out into a laugh, seeing Wonyoung's reddened face and panicky tone. Yujin leans in, a small smirk evident on her face. 

"Why are you so surprised? I can call you so many others. Princess. Love. Baby. Bunny," Yujin then moves close to Wonyoung's ear, "Mine. Because you belong to me, Jang Wonyoung." 

Wonyoung stops breathing from how low Yujin's voice went and every word that left Yujin's mouth sent shivers through Wonyoung's spine. Yujin took a step back, her face now sported a playful smile. Wonyoung cannot believe it! Ahn Yujin was fooling around with her and she's allowing her to do so. Oh, it was on. If Yujin liked to play then Wonyoung was more than ready to play it with her. She wanted to see who would give up first. There was a different glint in her eyes and Yujin noticed it all which made her gulp in terror. She might have just woken up the beast. Tonight was going to be a very interesting night for this couple. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After Hana had left the F4 members plus Wonyoung in search of Eunbi, she was having no luck in finding her. Eunbi had texted her telling Hana that she was backstage so she pushed open the doors leading into the hallways. Hana saw a couple of committee members running around and she was sure she spotted Sakura walking into the hall so where the hell was Eunbi? Hana leaned her back against the bannister, her uninjured hand held onto the rails for support. 

Despite standing outside the hall, Hana could still hear the heavy bass filled tracks blasting through the speakers. If she was being completely honest, she didn't want to be here. If she had a choice, she would fly to Paris or Vermont where her mom and aunt was but she knew better than to run away. She pushed off the bannister, pulling out her phone and was about to call Eunbi when she saw the very person that she prayed she wouldn't see tonight.

Kim Minjoo. 

It seems she wasn't the only one shocked. Minjoo made eye contact with Hana, her eyes widening in shock as her feet stopped. Hana was first to break away from the eye contact, turning on her heels as she attempted to leave. But, she stopped in her tracks when she heard Minjoo call out to her. 

"Hana sunbae!" 

Hana took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment before turning to face Minjoo.

"Kim Minjoo-ssi," Hana greets. 

Hana couldn't help herself as she admired Minjoo's outfit for the night. A navy blue floral print maxi dress matched with white heels. Her hair flowed freely behind her back. She was so beautiful that Hana was having trouble breathing but then, a sudden realisation hit her like a train. Kim Minjoo wasn't hers. Just like that, Hana was back on Earth. 

"How are you?" Minjoo asked. 

Hana held back a scoff. How was she? Hana was miserable, angry and heartbroken, all because of her! There was so many things that Hana wanted to say but stopped herself. 

"As you can see, I'm doing fine" Hana replied. 

Minjoo let out a small 'oh', "Um, is your hand still painful?" 

Hana held out her hand for Minjoo to see, "Painkillers lessen the pain, aside from that, it's fine." 

"That's good to know," Minjoo says, "So, where is Eunbi sunbae? I heard you were going to the ball with her." 

Hana never told anyone that she was going with Eunbi so how.... Then, it clicked making her grit her teeth in anger. Kwon Eun Bi. She must have told Minjoo. 

"I don't know. I wasn't even going to come but she asked so I just said ok. I'm still thinking of leaving. Even now" Hana spoke, not realising that she had expressed her true thoughts in front of Minjoo. 

"Oh, why? I would have thought that you enjoyed these things" Minjoo replied. 

Hana looks up at Minjoo, clicking her tongue, "Yeah well, I don't. I hate parties but of course, you wouldn't know that." 

"You know nothing about me," Hana blurts out without a second thought. 

Minjoo's eyes widened in shock as Hana immediately covers , realising the depth of her words. 

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it," Hana apologises. 

She turns to leave when she hears Minjoo speak up. 

"You're right. I know nothing about you. Eunbi sunbae does and she probably knows everything but it doesn't mean I don't want to." 

Hana's feet was stuck to the ground, not moving. Hana slowly turns around to see an upset Minjoo. 

Hana shakes the hope from her head, "You don't mean that. You like Kim Chaewon. You have absolutely no reason to want to know anything about me." 

"What I have for Chaewon sunbae is purely platonic! There is no feelings involved. What I have for you is-" Minjoo huffs, taking a huge breath before continuing, "It's different. You're different to me. You make my heart flutter and my stomach fills with butterflies each time you smile. I tell myself each day that you're just being kind but then, I hate the sight of you being nice to others. I hate it more when Eunbi sunbae is around you. She knows you better and she is perfect in every aspect, that's why I can't help but compare myself to her. Without knowing, I've already fallen for you." 

Minjoo didn't dare to look up after confessing. She was afraid. What if Hana didn't like her that way? What if Hana laughed at her failed attempt of confessing? Minjoo's mind was filled with what ifs and it was causing a mini mental breakdown. She stopped her train of thoughts when she felt a warm touch on her cheek. She slowly tilted her head up, staring at Hana's face that now sported a soft smile. 

"You really have a way of messing with my heart, Kim Minjoo." 

Minjoo could feel her heart speeding up with how warm Hana's voice was. 

"You break me and make me into a complete idiot and yet you can so easily fix me with your words. It's like you've cast a spell on me, a spell that I cannot break no matter how much I want to. What have you done to me, Kim Minjoo?" 

Hana leaned her forehead onto Minjoo's, their lips centimeters away from meeting. 

"I don't know" Minjoo whispers, "--but the spell goes both ways because now, I don't want to let go." 

Upon hearing those words, Hana bridges the gap between their lips. Their lips mould together so perfectly and it's like fireworks exploding. Minjoo's arms moves up so smoothly as she wraps her arms around Hana's neck. Hana smiles in between kisses as they finally break apart for air. Minjoo's arms were still hooked around Hana's neck as she laid her head on Hana's chest and smiled happily. Not knowing that trouble was coming and it wasn't going to be pretty.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TWO DOING?" 

Minjoo pulls away from Hana in shock as the two stood rooted. They saw a raging Eunbi marching towards them as Hana pulls Minjoo behind her, shielding her from Eunbi. 

"Stop!" Hana commanded. 

Eunbi glared at Hana, her eyes moving to Minjoo who was now half covered by Hana. 

"I asked a question. What were you doing?" Eunbi asked through gritted teeth. 

She was barely holding onto her will to drag Minjoo from behind Hana. 

Hana was quick to reply, her tone showing no signs of fear, "It's none of your business, Eunbi. Now, back off! You're scaring her." 

Eunbi scoffed, offended, "I'm scaring her? Are you truly protecting her? Have you forgotten that she's the girl who broke your heart, fawning over someone else? I'm the one who has been with you the whole time," Eunbi pointed at Minjoo, "Not her!" 

"That's enough!" Hana growled, "She doesn't have feelings for Chaewon. She just told me." 

"Does her words mean the truth? She could just be playing with you. Maybe she's finally happy that she's gotten your attention!" Eunbi spat angrily. 

Minjoo unable to stand Eunbi's accusations, stepped out from behind Hana. 

"I'm not playing with anyone! I genuinely like Hana sunbae" Minjoo defends herself but it seems to rile Eunbi even further. 

"Be quiet! You are not welcomed into this conversation!" Eunbi shouts, "Don't you see it, Hana! She acts different in front of you and Chaewon. She's clearly fooling around with the two of you!"

"No, I'm not!" Minjoo speaks up. 

"Enough, Kwon Eunbi!" Hana shouts and this time, Eunbi quiets down. 

"Who are you?" Hana asks Eunbi.

"I don't recognize you anymore. Are you really the Kwon Eunbi I know? Because the Kwon Eunbi I know wouldn't say these kind of things about others. Let alone accuse someone like this. What happened to you?" Hana questions, looking at Eunbi like she was a stranger. 

Eunbi finally snaps, "What happened? You happened! I fell for you! I have always loved you but you never saw me as anything but a friend. I've tried so many ways to get you to notice me but you never did. Then, she came along," Eunbi looks at Minjoo, her eyes filled with hatred, "--and she caught your eye. Everything I wanted, she got it without having to ask. What does she have that I don't?" 

Hana could only stare at Eunbi. Was this truly her fault? Did she turn Eunbi into this? 

"I'm sorry." 

That was the only thing Hana could think of saying but Eunbi didn't want her apologies.

Eunbi chuckled bitterly, "Forget it. I give up. I can't stand this anymore. I hope the two of you are happy." 

Eunbi her heels and walked away. The tears that she was holding finally slides down her face as she breaks out into a sprint. She needed to leave. Hana was about to follow her in fear that Eunbi would do something stupid when she was stopped by Minjoo. Hana was about to say something when she saw Minjoo pointing in the direction where Eunbi took off to. Hana followed Minjoo's finger and saw Chaewon rushing after Eunbi. 

"I think it's time Chaewon sunbae settles her own heart's matters" Minjoo says leaving Hana confused. 

"What do you mean by that?" Hana asks. 

Minjoo forces a smile, "Can we leave first?" 

Hana lets out a sigh, nodding as she holds out a hand to Minjoo. Minjoo lets out a small smile as she takes Hana's hand, clasping it tightly. They walked out of the school as Hana hailed a cab for them which took them far from the school. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That was part 1 of the ball. Part 2 will be coming soon. It will be Chaeyeon and Sakura and of course, Chaeyeon's little stalker. Miru and Hyewon's story will also be included. I hope you will be patient and wait for this story. The pieces are slowly coming together so it won't be long until the end. Thank you for reading and please leave more comments. I like reading what you think. From, H.