Ding-dong. Ding-dong.

“Hyunnie, did you order pizza?”

“No, I didn’t! Must be Tzuyu-ah’s online order?” 

Tzuyu threw a full house and Chae knew she lost again. Throwing the cards Tzuyu smirked at her dimpled friend.

“You get the door, Chaengie.”

haeyoung tried to kick air like a child throwing a tantrum.

“It must be wrong address. No one aside from delivery people knock at that door.”

Chae shouted at the door. “Whatever that is, we didn’t buy anything!” It was silent for a few second until the doorbell chimed again.

Chae cursed under her breathe and tiptoed to peek on the peephole when suddenly DaTzu became surprised when Chae suddenly had her back at the door and hand on her chest, looking very shocked. Dahyun stood up and immediately went to the door.

‘Who was it? Why do you look like you’ve seen a ghost?” Dahyun tried to push Chaeng off the door but Chaeyoung recovered from her shock and opened the door.

“Uh, hi.”

The girl smiled awkwardly and tried to look past Chaeng. “Uhm, good evening. Is this where Momo-chan live?”

Dahyun and Chae exchanged looks. This pretty girl is looking for Momo?

"Uhm, yeah. She does. Can we help you with something?"

" Is she here? We're supposed to do an all-nighter for our Socio project..."

"Uhm..." Dahyun looked at Chaeng who was open-mouthed gawking at the guest.Tzuyu cleared .

“Chaeng.”

Chaeng didn't move nor respond.

“Changie! Maybe you want to ask the guest inside the house?”

Chaeng woke up from her reverie and laughed embarrassedly and moved to the side to let Mina enter the house. "Please, come inside and take a seat."

Mina stood in the middle of the living room and looked around. It was a homey apartment with a mix of everything that belong to each of the resident of the apartment. Photos adorned the wall, most of the three young people who welcomed her and maybe few stolen shots of Momo.Tzuyu came back with cookies and a glass of juice. She gestured to Chaeyoung to clear the table of the cards they were playing so that Tzuyu could put down the tray.

“Son Chaeyong!Where are you planning to make the guest sit? Could you remove your painting from the sofa please?

“Oh, you paint?”

Chaeyoung could feel the heat on her face. The girls voice is melodious. “Yes. I’m an art major, sophomore.”

Mina eyed a painting on the wall. It was a girl looking at the sea during sunset—it’s a painting with swirling orange, yellow, dark blue and some grays.

"Did you paint that?”

“Sunset?Yes. I did.”

“You’re good! Do you do commissions?”

“Sometimes.”

“You must let me see some of your works.”

Chaeyoung blushed redder than her painting. Before she can reply, Momo emerged in the room with Dahyun.

“Oh, Mina. I’m sorry for making you wait.”

“Oh, it’s okay. Sorry for barging like this.”

“How did you know where I live?”

“I asked in the Registrar’s.”

School Meal Club exchanged glances with each other. This is the first in three years that someone looked for their unnie.Tzuyu raised an eyebrow at their unnie.

“Oh, I’m sorry. These are my housemates. Kim Dahyun. Son Chaeyoung. Chou Tzuyu.” Mina bowed to each of them. “Uhm guys, she’s Mina. Myoui Mina.”

“The MYOUI MINA??!” Tzuyu slapped Chaeng’s shoulder to shush her up. Chaeyoung whispered loudly back at her. “What?! You don’t know Myoui Mina?!”

Tzuyu blushed,elbowed Chaeng and whispered. “SO who’s she?” Mina giggled and Chaeng blushed again. “Sorry,our techie friend her doesn’t know anything about art.”

“Hey!”

“She’s the famous ballerina!”

Mina smiled shyly “Uhm, it’s not a big—“

“—She performed a lot of classical pieces, even in abroad.”

“Ooooh, you have a fan!” Dahyun teased Chaeyoung and the younger tried to reach Dahyun’s pigtail to pull it but Dahyun is faster and hid behind Momo. She never had seen Chae flustered and she wanted to more.

“Okay, kids, play is over. Let’s not embarrass ourselves further in front of Ms. Myoui.”

“No, it’s okay. Maybe next time I have a performance here in Seoul everybody can come?”

SMC’s jaws dropped. “Really?”

“Of course! Any friend of Momo is my friend too! You would come, will you?” The trio were shocked but nodded their heads.

“Well, we’ll be going first. Oh.” She turned to the center table and grabbed the glass of juice and chugged it and picked a cookie.“Thanks for this Tzuyu-ah.”

It was not until Mina and Momo had driven away before they realized what happened and Momo could swear she heard her housemates scream, who probably still can’t believe they’ve met Mina.

“I’m sorry---“

“Nah. I think they’re cute.”

“They are.”

“—Just like you.”

“Hu- what?”

“I mean,your friendship is cute!” Mina tried to cover her slip of the tongue with a laugh.

“It must be fun living with them.”

“Oh.Yes.They are a very unproblematic bunch.”

“Unlike my friends?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“You didn’t. I did.”

Momo don’t have anything to say about that.

Mina was driving past the University area to the suburbs. “You live here?”

“Well, my parents are at home from their business trip, so I figured to spare you from all those embarrassing questions..”

“Your parents that scary?”

“Well, let’s just say that among my friends, only Nayeonie is allowed to stay after dinner.”

“Even Minatozaki?”

“Yes. They don’t like Sana much even when we were kids. Now, they just look at her leather jacket and she’s banned from our household.”

“Oh.”

“Jeongyeonie too. They felt being a chef and a jock is way beneath them, beneath me.”

“So I won’t be welcome in your home too?” Mina laughed, but it sounded hollow. “I can make my own friends, Momo.”

“So where are we going, if not at your house?”

Mina grinned. “Hirai Momo, welcome at The Crib!”

Momo gawked at the big house, no, it’s more like a mansion in an estate. The lawn was wide and at the back figured out there’s a swimming pool based on the smell of chlorine.

“You live here?”

“Uhm actually no. But we spend time here a lot. C’mon inside.” Momo’s breathe was caught on upon entering the house. There the usual living room but there’s a gigantic TV screen there, great surround sound system and game consoles. On a door on the left is like a big game room, with different arcade games ranging from slot machines, basketball, billiards, darts and a lot more.

“Woah.”

“You like it?”

“Did you buy the whole mall and put it here?”

"It’s tiring to go out and go to different places so we decided on what we love to do and just put everything here in the crib. Outside there’s a tennis court, swimming pool and a biking or skateboard area.”

“I feel small.”

“Don’t be! Later, we could explore the whole house.”

“But we’re going to do the project---“

“We can just do it later. First, let’s eat! I’m famished!”

Mina pulled her on the dining area and again Momo was awestruck. There’s a long table probably can fit around 10 people, then state-of-the-art cooking appliances. There are also equipment for cooking Korean barbeque.

“Jeongyeonie loves to cook for us when she has the time, so we have this. Beats ordering for delivery. However since she’s not here, I just bought ready to eat food from the mart, hope it was just okay?”

The table is filled with different kinds of food---from pizza to burgers, to Chinese takeaways and Japanese food and there’s of course, Korean dishes.

“Are your friends coming? You bought enough to feed an army.”

Mina laughed. “I hope not.”

“They don’t like me.”

Mina sighed. “They are usually great and they take care of me. I dunno why are they like that with you.”

“Maybe because I am ugly?”

Mina gasped. “You are not!”

“Don’t worry I am used to that…”

“You are maybe…different.”

“Just because I look like this doesn’t mean they could make my life miserable.”

“You’re actually right and I apologize on their behalf. Could we… I mean, I want us to be friends, Momo.”

“Why?”

“Why not?”

“Ugly as I am, I don’t need pity, Mina.”

Mina looked hurt and Momo wished she could take back what she said. But Momo knows what people say behind her back and she vowed she will not trust anyone but herself.

“..I’m sorry, Mina. I—“

“That’s ok, I understand. But I am not doing this out of pity. Aside from my friends,you are the first one who's not intimidated by who I am. And in the kind of life I have,it’s really hard to find genuine people who will not ride with our fame. So I hope we can be friends.”

Momo hung her head and Mina held out her hand for Momo to shake.Momo looked up at Mina's eyes and all she could she was sincerity and warmth. She nodded and hesitantly shook Mina's hand. She just wished she won’t regret it.

***

Two hours later, she was regretting it. Momo realized that she had been wrong about Mina. When she first met her, she thought that this girl is quiet, soft-spoken and very submissive.After a couple of hours together, she could say that Mina is calculative, cold-hearted, and very persuasive. Momo’s whines are lost with Mina pulling her to her bedroom and insisted to play dress up.

“It’s spring dance next next month and all seniors are required to attend.Why don’t we find something to wear?”

Momo protested and wants to leave, away from this girl. Mina just laughed and when Momo insisted to go, Mina pouted and released her aegyo.

This girl is really dangerous.

“C’mon now, Momo please?”

“No! Just dress up with Sana!”

Mina rolled her eyes. “Sana outgrew this. And anyway, let’s just see any clothes that you can wear. Just check it out please?”

Yep. This girl would be a great business woman one day, with that convincing power. Momo sighed, resigned. “Okay…”

Mina opened a door that Momo thought is just a simple closet but when Mina disappeared in it, Momo was surprised to see that it’s a walk in closet with hundreds of clothes, dresses and shoes! “These all yours?”

“No, it’s all ours. Usually when there’s events it’s kind of hassle to go home to change so we all just change here."

 Momo gingerly touched the dresses and saw that these are all branded, being able to recognize most of it and in fact, she modeled some of it.Mina picked some dresses and asked Momo to try it out.

Uh-oh.

“Mina…”

“Just humor me.”

“I’ll just try out one ok?”

Momo just picked out a billowing yellow dress which she thinks is two size bigger. She cannot risk a body-hugger dress lest she reveal too much. Mina allowed her to step in the changing room and Momo quickly change. The reaction that Mina let out was something she didn’t expect.

“oh, wow, Momo, yellow brought out that glow out of you. C’mon sit here, I’ll apply make-up on you!”

“what? No, you don’t have to---“

“I want to---“

“Why?”

“Aren’t this what friends do? Dress up, apply make up, do nails?"

“Haven't you done these with your friends?”

“Do you think Sana and Jeongyeonie would like to do it with me? Nayeonie, probably, but she’s busy with their business. So..."

"I see."

Momo felt that Mina was yearning for these ordinary things, for normalcy in her life. So even if she is against this, she feels that she wanted to give in to what Mina wants, because she understands how loneliness feels, even if you are surrounded by fame and wealth. Mina brushed her hair but when Mina tries to remove her glasses, she involuntarily grabbed Mina's arm and held it, preventing Mina from doing so. Mina was surprised and looked questioningly at Momo. Momo was surprised too but she can't let Mina remove her glasses.

Not yet.

"Uhm, I'm sorry. I am literally blind without my glasses..."

"Haven't you tried to wear contacts?" In a daily basis, Momo thought to herself.

"I did. But it's very uncomfortable and my eyes got irritated one time so I didn't try again."

"I'm sorry."

Momo smiled reassuringly. "No need to apologize Mina. I just don't feel, uhm, comfortable with these fashion things, though I took up Fashion design as major because I like working behind the scenes and my appearance won't be judged but my creations."

"I'm sorry if I am forcing myself to you..."

"It's okay..."

"Oh, okay."

An awkward silence filled the air and Momo stood up. "I'll go up and change so we could start our project." Mina nodded but as soon as Momo entered the changing room, she hit herself on the head.

"Now you ruined it Mina."

Mina had been enjoying Momo's company but now, she doesnt know how to proceed without making it more awkward than this. Momo emerged the room wearing her tracksuit again. Mina nodded and they went down to the living room to do the project.

They spend the next two hours transcribing the interview and when Mina was doing the powerpoint, Momo decided to rest her eyes for a while. Mina was asking something at Momo and when she looked up, she saw the older already sleeping, snoring lightly.

Mina giggled. She went nearer and looked at Momo's face. Closer,she could see the moles on her face,the upturn nose,perfect lips. Mina swallowed.Hard. She removed the glasses because she's afraid it might break as Momo sleeps and Mina was surprised on the difference on the girl's appearance when the glasses were removed.

Mina was astounded. She lightly parted the girl's bangs and got more surprised.

She's...pretty.

But why?

Why did she allow to be bullied when she could actually look normal?

What are your secrets, Hirai Momo?