"Minju!"

Well, .

Minju tightened her grip on Sua's hand and started walking faster in the direction opposite to the voice calling out to her.

Please, please stop.

Under usual circumstances, she would have been elated to have run into Baekhyun. It was more than a few times that she'd fantasized about something like this. But with her friends around, she couldn't risk being seen with him. The onslaught of questions would prove to be a headache and she wouldn't be able to live with herself if she gave their secret away somehow.

"Minju!" Baekhyun called out to her again. If he called Sua too, she would be as good as dead.

But before he could, a hand grabbed onto her shoulder. "Hey. Someone is calling you. Where are you going?" It was Sehun.

"O-oh really?" Minju stuttered and reluctantly turned around. Even though the crowd was bustling, her eyes found Baekhyun immediately. She couldn't tell if it was because of his flashy hair or just because it was him. 

She noticed the way his eyes lit up the moment he saw her. He raised a hand to wave at her but faltered as he spotted Sehun standing beside her.

Ahyoung popped up from behind them and gasped. "Isn't that guy the one who plays EJ?! Is he saying hi to me?!"

"Not you dummy. He was calling Minju, I think." Sehun answered.

Minju looked at Ahyoung, horrified. Her friend was looking at her with a question mark above her head and Minju's lips moved soundlessly in an effort to defend herself.

Baekhyun interrupted. "Minju... is what you said your name is, right? I'll take a picture with you."

Minju looked at him with bewildered eyes. What?

Baekhyun's eyebrows furrowed as he moved his eyes from her to her friends and back to her.

"You said you wanted a photo with me, right?" Translation: Come here before you out your away.

It took another five seconds for Baekhyun's plan to finally dawn upon her. He was saving her from getting caught.

She hastily pulled out her phone from her pocket and made her way to him. She held her phone in front of herself but almost dropped it when Baekhyun swooped right next to her.

Minju held her breath. He was too close. She couldn't turn her face towards him without touching his. His musky cologne boggled her senses and she could almost feel the heat radiating off his body. She almost yelped when his cold fingers touched her shoulder as he put his around her. She was reminded that it was winter once again.

"Here... look at the camera, please! Say cheese!"

Minju snapped out of her thoughts and made her best attempt at a teeth-y smile. Baekhyun's blindingly bright smile was distracting her. The way his eyes sparkled despite the lack of sunlight fascinated her. Her heart was beating so loud, she could barely hear what he was saying to her.  Wait, what?

"...re you doing?"

Huh?

"What are you doing?" Baekhyun repeated. "Huh?" Had she done something wrong?

"Why aren't you taking the photo?" 

"What?" She looked towards where he gestured with his eyes. "O-OH! IM SO SORRY!" Minju floundered for words as her neck turned beet red. Baekhyun had been leading her so well she forgot that she was the one holding the phone. 

Baekhyun broke into a laugh as Minju hastily snapped a couple of pictures in embarrassment. "Thank you..." She said, her eyes doing everything to avoid his crinkled ones. She wondered why she always had to make a fool of herself every time they met.

"ALL RIGHT! IT'S MY TURN!" Their little moment (Was it a moment? Minju didn't know.) was interrupted by an excited Ahyoung. "I can take a picture too, right? I'm a huge fan!" 

Huge fan my . You don't even know his name. I've liked him since his first project- enough Minju you sound like a petty fangirl. So what? I am a petty fangirl. I liked him way before she did.

Minju stared at her friend as she made pouty faces next to her fake boyfriend. She tried not to feel pleased when she noticed how Baekhyun was keeping his hands all to himself. 

Around thirty minutes later, the group of friends was seated in a neat looking pub. It was still daytime so it was just them and a couple of other customers. They'd placed their order and most of them were busy uploading pictures of the latest episode on social media. 

Minju's phone buzzed with a text from the guy who'd been on her mind for the last half hour. 

Are you okay? I'm sorry, I didn't know you were with your friends. I thought it was just you and Sua.

Minju felt apologetic and immediately replied. 

I'm the one who should be sorry. I put you in a tough spot. Thanks for saving me back there.

Don't worry. It was no trouble. :)

Minju sighed and put her phone down. She still felt bad for bothering him.

"Hey Minju, what's the name of the actor we took a photo with? What's his social media username?" She rolled her eyes before answering, "Byun Baekhyun. bbh_392407"

Everyone was too full after their meal so Sua, Yuna and Minju chose to go back to the dorms and get some sleep while the rest opted to go to the nearest karaoke bar to "burn those calories we just ingested".

The next semester started sooner than Minju wanted it to and she was back to her routine.

Sua had walked her to work after their first day and Minju braced herself for the oncoming load. The restaurant was bustling with students from her university. It was like a tradition. The start of a new semester meant her bumping into everyone she knew from school at work and outside. She almost saw them outside more than she saw them in class. She figured they wanted to make the most of their time while they were still free from projects and assignments. 

Minju was working tirelessly until an unsuspecting blob of oil decided to jump on the one exposed part of her arm. She jumped away with a loud gasp and hissed in pain. Mrs. Lee, who had just then entered the kitchen set her plates in her hands away and rushed to Minju.

"Come here!" she said as she pulled Minju towards the sink and put her arm under the cold water from the tap.

"You should've been careful!" Mrs. Lee chided to which Minju defended herself with a little whine.

"Mrs. Lee, what do I do about- What happened? Did you burn yourself?" Asked Sujeong, appearing from behind their manager. "That looks bad. You'll probably get a blister."

Minju made a fake crying face at her. "Tch tch. This is why I tell you to stop daydreaming." She said while shaking her head.

Turning to their manager Sujeong said, "Mrs. Lee, can you go outside? Some customers are asking for some kind of coupon but I don't know what it's about. I'll take care of this."

Sujeong took out the first aid box from a cupboard as Mrs. Lee left with a nod. They were out of ointment but Minju's handy vaseline jelly came to her rescue.

A little while later Minju sat at the counter while Mrs. Lee took over the kitchen. She was looking around the restaurant trying to recognize as many people as she could when her ears perked up at the name of someone very special.

A voice from the TV speakers was announcing, "... that's right everyone! Actor Byun Baekhyun, the hottest star of this season is our first guest for this year!"

Minju's attention was into the screen in a heartbeat. "Welcome! It's great to have you on our show! Please introduce yourself to our viewers."

"Hello everyone! I'm Actor Byun Baekhyun who is currently appearing as idol star EJ in the drama 'Dreams Come True'. It airs on Mondays and Tuesdays at 10 PM on LBN2 so please give it a lot of love!" The interviewer and Baekhyun burst into laughter at his cute antic but Minju was in awe.

Minju couldn't believe that she knew this man personally. Seeing him on TV made him seem like the same rookie actor she had a crush on. She continued watching the show, seldom taking her eyes off the screen to process a few bills.

"So, Baekhyun. You're on a roll these days, aren't you?! Dramas, movies, CFs, I've heard they are all fighting to cast you!" The interviewer exclaimed and Baekhyun humbly shook his head. 

"You flatter me. It's all thanks to the love I've been receiving from everyone."

"Could it also be because of the love you are receiving from a certain someone?" Minju froze and the camera panned to Baekhyun. He clearly looked flustered. 

"Oh, pardon me. I know that it's kind of a personal question but I won't lie that no one is curious about it.", the interviewer continued.

Looking composed now, Baekhyun waved his hands. "It's okay. I don't mind."

"Okay then!" the host rubbed his palms together like he was getting ready to slap some meat. "You've been an actor for quite some time but the first time you made headlines was because of a dating scandal with top star Kwon Seri, and the second time because of your girlfriend. Did you realize how viral you went?"

"A-ah, yes." Baekhyun stuttered and Minju guessed it had something to do with the 'dating scandal' part. "Honestly, we were really surprised, me and my girlfriend both. It was so sudden that we still can't believe that it happened."

Minju's almost melted into a puddle. It was the first time Baekhyun called her his girlfriend. 

The interviewer asked, "What was your girlfriend's reaction to your sudden popularity?"

"She was happy for me, of course," Baekhyun replied with a smile."I'm really grateful for all the support she gives me. I wouldn't have made it here without her."

Minju wanted to cry. She didn't know if he was being genuine. It looked like he was. It felt like she wanted him to be.

The host then went on to ask questions about Baekhyun's new projects and Minju was disturbed by a few customers wanting to pay. She'd have to watch the interview again at home. 

The hours kept passing and Minju kept trying to avoid all the annoying seniors who'd step inside the restaurant. Chanyeol had dropped by for some drinks with his friends and didn't leave before treating her to a drink as well. Talk about burdensome.

A week passed and Minju was packing for her trip back to her hometown. She hadn't been able to visit her mother for Christmas and during New Year's because of the finals fiasco but finally got a chance because of the Independence Day holiday, which happened to be right before the weekend. It had been months since she'd last seen Mom and although they talked on the phone almost every day, Minju still missed her greatly.

Sua had already left a couple of days prior to join her family on a trip to Jeju Island. Her parents had invited Minju too but Sua had already refused, knowing her personality. 

Minju went back to her room after having had a midnight snack with Ahyoung, hoping to get some sleep before catching an early bus to her town the next morning. She had just gotten out of the shower when she heard her phone ringing.

The call ended before she could answer and she gasped when she looked at the notifications. There were seven missed calls from three different numbers that she didn't recognise; all within a span of fifteen minutes.

Immediately dialing the last number she received a call from, Minju waited with waited breaths. She could sense that something was wrong. 

Someone finally picked up after what felt like forever.

"Hello? Who—"

"Hello? Minju?! Oh, why weren't you answering the calls?! Your mother is in the hospital!"

Minju felt her blood run cold. 

"What? Who's speaking?"

"It's me, Aunt Gyeongae! Jiyeon's mom! The ambulance just took your mother to the hospital."

"Why? What happened?! How is she?"

Her own voice shaking, the lady replied, "I don't know, dear. We found her unconscious in her room when we went to check on her because she didn't drop in for dinner earlier. Jiyeon's dad went with the paramedics."

Minju could feel her legs going numb. She barely registered the voice asking her if she was alright and grabbed onto her desk before falling to her knees.

"A-auntie, is Jiyeon with you? C-can I talk to her?". She heard the lady calling for her daughter through the static of the phone. A moment later, another voice greeted Minju.

"Hey, Minju? It's Jiyeon." Minju hastily asked her friend about her mother's condition. "I'm not sure. But it looked serious. We found her around an hour ago but I think she was out for a couple of hours before we did. The hospital asked us to contact you.... are you going to come?".

Minju wiped the tears she didn't know had started spilling. "Yeah." She answered with a breathless voice. "Yes, I'll be there soon."

"Hey!" She heard the older lady's voice shout from the other end. "No, honey! Just come in the morning! There won't be any busses or taxis available at this time anyway."

No. She would be there. She had to be there.

But how? 

Minju had called all her friends and none of them were available to give her a ride. Most of them had already gone to their towns and cities while the rest didn't own cars.

Wait. There was one person in the city who owned a car, if she remembered correctly. She waited with tapping feet as she waited for Chanyeol to answer her call.

He didn't. She tried again. And again. But to no avail.

Her heart grew heavier by the second. She could feel the pain in from crying too much. Who would she turn to now?

She had considered waiting till the morning but just the thought of her mother being in pain made her burst into tears. It took four hours to drive from Seoul to her town. She couldn't bring herself to wait. 

Minju contemplated for half a moment before calling Baekhyun with shaking hands. She knew he owned a car. At least the van he used for work schedules. 

One ring.

Two rings.

Three rings.

Four rings.

No answer. 

She choked on a sob. Trying one last time, she waited.

One ring.

Two rings.

"Hello?"

Relief filled her lungs as she finally exhaled.

"Hello?", Minju cried into the phone. "Baekhyun?"

She heard shuffling from his side. "Hello? Minju?"

Anyone would have been able to tell how he sounded like he was woken up from a tired sleep but Minju was too preoccupied to notice. She rattled her situation to him before he could say another word. 

"Can you take me to my mom?"

"..."

"Get ready. I'll pick you up in thirty minutes."

True to his words, there he was. Minju got into his car and he started the engine. She quickly explained the situation with a little more detail to him once again and fixed the address into the GPS. 

After a few tense moments, she decided to write a text explaining everything to Sua. The drive was quiet, only the buzz of the engine to comport her. She didn't know if the heater was on but it certainly felt warm. Warm enough to lull her exhausted self to sleep. 

She was awoken by Bakhyun's hands shaking her lightly. 

"We're here."

Wiping her eyes tiredly, Minju looked out the window. She could tell that it was dawn by the peach-tinted sky. 

She shrugged off a blanket which she guessed Baekhyun had put on her. She looked towards him who was leaning with his on the window, patiently waiting for her to fix herself.

She felt her heart melt. Minju felt thankful and sorry at the same time. Thankful for him driving her all the way there, sorry for making him drive her all the way there.

Feeling the cool morning air hit her as she stepped out, she walked to the hospital building with Baekhyun following her. 

They had reached the reception and were asking for her mother when Minju spotted Jiyeon in the lobby. Her friend led her to the ER where her mother was resting. 

Baekhyun didn't want to impose so he opted to sit in the waiting area while Minju checked on Mom and sorted things out. 

Minju teared up as soon as she spotted her mom. She was awake and smiling and chatting with visitors but still looked weak. 

"Mom!"

"Oh! There she comes! Minju!"

Minju whined, "Mom! What happened? I was so worried. I told you to not overwork yourself!"

"See? I told you she'd scold me as soon as she sees me." Mom said with a laugh to her friend. 

Jiyeon's mom answered Minju from the side. "Your mom is alright. She fainted because of low blood pressure. She'd run out of her pills."

Sighing in worry Minju said, "You should have told me, Mom. I would've had them sent to you." She sat down beside her and took her mother's frail hand into hers. "Do you know how worried I was? What if something bad had happened?" 

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry. Mom was wrong." Mom replied with a sigh. "Stop with your scolding, you're making me look bad in front of my friends."

Minju turned towards said friends in alarm. She was in such a haste that she had completely forgotten to greet them. How rude of her. She looked to see two middle-aged ladies sitting on stools and a young man standing behind them. She hadn't noticed him at all, where had he appeared from?

She recognised the two ladies as Aunt Soonshim and Aunt Oksoon and greeted them, but the guy? He looked familiar but she was sure she was meeting him for the first time. Could he be...?

"Oh right! That's Jongdae. Soonshim's son!", Mom answered her suspicions. "The handsome one I told you about". She half- mouthed, half-whispered. The ladies chuckled and said man muffled his own laugh with a cough.

"You can't recognise him, can you? Well, I suppose. You haven't seen him since elementary school. He's always been busy studying in Busan."

Minju reacted with an 'aaah' of understanding and bowed to him politely. 

"Good to see you, Minju. You've grown a lot. You were this little when I saw you last." He joked good-naturedly.

She continued the conversation with good sport. 

Around fifteen minutes later, the visitors had all bid goodbye and left Minju to be alone with her mother. 

"You look awful." Mom said when Minju came back from getting the reports and sorting the hospital fees. "Did you even get any sleep? How did you even come here so late at night?"

Minju rolled her eyes and replied, "Of course I got to sleep—"

She jumped to her feet with a loud gasp. Baekhyun. She'd completely forgotten about him. It had been over an hour and she'd just left him alone in the waiting area.

Without clearing her mom's confusion, she rushed to the waiting area. He wasn't where she had left him. She looked around for people wearing hoodies. (Was he in a hoodie, though? Heck, she couldn't remember.)

After a few minutes of wildly searching the whole floor, Minju found him in the same waiting area she left him in. She wouldn't have recognized him if not for his silver hair peeking from under his cap. 

He was sitting on the corner most seat, his head nodding in sleep. He also had a half-finished yogurt cup tightly clutched in his hand. 

Minju winced. She'd done more than just bother him. How would she ever repay him for his kindness?

She sat on the empty seat next to him and stared at his sleeping figure. She wondered if he didn't feel cold in the flimsy oversized T-shirt he was in.

Minju wasn't wearing anything much warmer than him, even her socks were mismatched, but she was sorry that Baekhyun had to go through trouble because of her.

She was still staring at his face when his head bobbled around until he almost woke up with a jerk.

She almost laughed but also felt bad so she gently touched the side of his face so she could set his head against the wall.

But Baekhyun woke up as soon as she touched him (probably because of her cold fingers) and Minju moved away from him sheepishly.

"Oh." He said in a sleepy voice. "You're here. How's your mother?"

Minju waved a hand in assurance, "She's fine, thankfully." She went on to add, "You look tired. Do you mind going to my house to get sleep?"

"Thank you, I need that." He smiled gratefully. "But I should meet your mother first. It would be rude if I don't."

Minju agreed with a smile. God, you put all the good qualities in one(1) man. 

Baekhyun used the restroom to get refreshed and they made their way to Mom five minutes later. 

Minju noticed that he took off his cap as they neared her bed. She wondered if Mom could recognise Baekhyun because of his hair. She dismissed that thought immediately. Her mom didn't watch much TV. She couldn't possibly.

Mom's jaw drop was noticeable from across the room. Yeah, Mom. Baekhyun has that kind of effect on the ladies.

Minju and Baekhyun stood awkwardly in front of Mom. Her jaw was still hanging.

"Sooooo... Baekhyun, this is my mom. Mom, this is Baekhyun." She said with a fake smile. "He's the one whole drove me here."

Mom finally closed and stared at Baekhyun for a good ten seconds.

With furrowed eyebrows, she said, "I think I've seen you somewhere."

No way. NO WAY! 

Had Minju's mother recognised Baekhyun? Her mom who thought Bae Young Joon was still 30 years old?

"I've definitely seen you somewhere..." Mom continued. Minju gulped. 

Her mother clapped her hands with her a sudden gasp. "Aren't you... my future son-in-law?!"

What?

Minju's neck flared red. She turned to look at Baekhyun in embarrassment. He looked equally embarrassed. Mom continued laughing hysterically to her joke in the background.

"M-Mom!" Minju protested while awkwardly glancing at Baekhyun. He looked mortified.

"So?" Mom didn't get the hint. "Are you Minju's boyfriend?"

"No!"

"Yes."

WHAT?

She turned her head to stare at Baekhyun with the widest eyes possible.

He glanced at her once before clasping his hands in front of himself respectfully and clearing his throat.

"Yes. I am Minju's boyfriend, Mother."

Oh, Lord. Oh, Lord.