Seulgi rushed into the staff entrance of the arena. She was called last minute to fill in for Johnny's workmate. The poor man had a family emergency and had to fly back to Seoul. The concert was tomorrow and time was of the essence. An event as big as this one, a celebration of the friendship of two countries, they had to get someone they could trust quickly and who'd be able to do the work on special circumstances.

And that… That is exactly what Seulgi's resume consisted of.

The event organizers could have filled the spot in with a local contact but Johnny's bosses preferred it was someone who can easily be the voice of the Korean artists. They were after all in a foreign country.

It just so happens that he has great luck. His best friend, Seulgi, is currently on a vacation in an island at the country. Being that she's the best creative director he knows from their extensive extra curricular activities all throughout high school and college, and that she's multilingual, well, there was no need to consider anyone else.

Seulgi was already late since the flight back to the city was a bit delayed on account of air traffic. And then the world decided it felt a lot less like cooperating with her so she got stuck in the middle of a traffic jam for almost two hours.

She apologized blindly at the person she bumped into on the way, but Johnny has been calling her non-stop asking where she was. When she finally walked into the center of the arena where the stage had been fully constructed, Johnny was looking incredulously at her.

"Save it Johnny. I had to cut my vaca short to get here. If the name of our country wasn't at stake here, I wouldn't even lift a finger unless we're talking double or triple pay. You know how difficult it is to get a break in this industry." Johnny is the stage engineer, so yes, he knows full well what she is talking about.

"Sorry. I'm just really stressed since the artists will be here in 2 hours and everyone's too busy to even try to understand Minsoo hyung's plan."

"I was out there just now. Trust me, unless their hotels are in walking distance from here, they'll at least be 30 minutes late. Traffic in Manila might as well be just as bad as the traffic in Seoul." Seulgi replied as she was handed the set list to study it quickly. "The streets out there are just as congested as your nose when you had that flu last year."

"Yah! We swore never to speak of that again!" Johnny said, nudging her arm.

Within the next 2 hours, Seulgi has studied the set list and the plan created by the guy she was filling in for. She has also held a meeting with the lights and sounds engineers, and the stage crew, to discuss some changes in the plan to make the program better. She was able to explain how she wanted things to go down and stressed that she wants nothing short of a flawless show. It was an easy process for her and that was why she was Johnny's only pick for the job all along. Aside from the obvious convenience of her being in the same country, this was something she could do in her sleep.

By the time lunch rolled in, everyone was in their own little places, enjoying their food. Most of the staff were scattered somewhere in the back. Only Johnny and Seulgi have decided to eat at the stage. The artists have also started coming in.

One of Seulgi's legs, her right one, dangled aimlessly off the front of the stage while her left was folded in front of her. She and Johnny were facing each other as they ate.

"I can't believe you're wearing your swimsuit right now." The tall man teased.

"Shut up! This is my only one-piece suit. Everything else I have are either crop tops, florals, or sun-dresses." The man had the audacity to sputter in laughter. Seulgi made a show of pretending to throw food at him. "Besides, I used to always do this with my leotards after ballet class." She said defensively.

Just then, Seulgi heard a familiar voice calling her best friend's name. She didn't need to look to see that it was EXO's manager. Though she tried not to look at him, her sight was instantly drawn to the gorgeously tan male clad in plain white shirt and denim jeans with bear prints on its pockets; details Seulgi couldn't help but smile at. He had his denim jacket in his hand.

Anyone else would look redundant with a denim on denim outfit but not this man. Why? Because he is EXO's Kai, and everything looked good on him. Much to Seulgi's dismay, Kai, or as she calls him, Jongin, had an unpleasant expression. He may have tried to hide it by looking down but she still caught it.

"Oh hey, hyung! Have you had lunch yet? There's food in the back. You guys can go eat now. You still have time since you'll be the third to practice. Sorry, 2 other groups got here before you." Johnny explained.

"Great. The traffic probably got the guys starving. Don't worry about the practice line up, it's fine." Said male replied, giving Johnny a friendly pat on the shoulder before leading the group to the back where their dressing suite is. The members gave Johnny and Seulgi short greetings. Except for Jongin. He only spared them a timid bow.

When Seulgi looked at Johnny, he had a -eating grin on his face. She decided then it was time for a french fry to come flying to his cheek. But with her messed up aim, it hit the guy's nose.

"Stop it, Johnny." She whined though it was quickly followed by a chuckle.

"I can't help it. Do you see how he's always so upset when I'm around you?"

"Maybe if you didn't taunt him about it, or you weren't such a smartass about it, he wouldn't be like that."

"But it's so obvious he's jealous. He turns Hulk-green every single time, I swear."

"Okay, now you're exaggerating. Why would he be jealous?"

Johnny made a disbelieving face at her.

"He's been like that since high school. And you…" Johnny stressed the word and pointed at her before continuing. "… know why. You just won't admit it."

"Hey! That's not fair. I never denied anything. I just don't see it that way."

"You know what I don't get? It's how you two ended up this way when you were practically a married couple back then. You bickered like one and yet annoyingly inseparable."

Seulgi knew why. But she was a little too prideful.

"Don't ask me. He was the one who came into the practice room on his graduation day to pull me aside and tell me that we're better off friends. He said it was a much easier way to love me than the other option." She had to admit, even with so many years between now and that moment, it still stung that Jongin couldn't even be forward about what the other option was.

"But why? You were both going somewhere. It's not even like you're a bum now. You could have been an idol if you wanted to."

"Oh I wanted to. Believe me, I really did." Seulgi let out a sigh. "But the 'rents dude, that's not what they wanted me to do. This isn't even what they wanted for me. I just really got tired of being the textbook perfect daughter. I wanted to do something as close to the thing I love the most since it was too late to be a performer.".

"Why is it too late?" Johnny didn't get it. It's not like Seulgi stopped being talented.

"Because we dancers have a shelf life…" Seulgi said with yet another deep sigh. This time she felt something hit her square between the brows. It was a balled up small tissue.

"First of all, that's ballet dancers. Probably. You're a well-rounded dancer so there's a huge difference. And second, I told you to stop watching Center Stage. Or at least stop believing and quoting it. How many great performers now  are well over 30 years old. You're only 25, you idiot."

"I might as well be 50 in dancer years." She replied. Growing old maybe the one thing that scares her the most.

"If you really believed that, you wouldn't be spending your free days at Taeyong's using the space to practice in between his classes." And before she could protest or deny it, he quickly supplied, "Yeah, I know. He tells me everything. He's like a gossip. He needs to get out more."

"It's okay. If you think about it, I'm better of as this. If I was an idol like Jongin, I would have no control over my own schedule, my freedom in general. There's a certain expectation when you're in their place that if you fail to live up to, or just slip from once, may cause your entire career. Besides, who would you be going with on your annual Dora and Diego adventures if I was an idol?" Seulgi to make light of it. But her words held a much deeper meaning.

Being an idol meant sacrifices. And there were just other things she couldn't sacrifice for the dream. Actually, there was only one. Jongin. She knew full well that she would have had to take the same measure he did back in high school if they were ever to have a shot at being successful idols.

Seulgi gave a longing look to the rest of the stage and then to the side where Jongin had disappeared from earlier. She loved Jongin more than she loved the dream. But don't get her wrong. It's not like she judged or resented the man for what he did.

She understood perfectly. If anything, she's incredibly proud of what he has achieved thus far. She would have hated for him to be with her and eventually regret his decision if their friends' careers took off and his didn't, all because he decided to pass on the dream to be her lover.

Jongin simply wanted the dream, the world. And Seulgi was okay with that. Even though what ifs always arose when she saw him. Yes his group was already incredibly popular and successful. However there was still a little way to go before Jongin and his group could conquer the world, so to speak. And by all means, Seulgi wanted that for him.

That's why she was okay with keeping her distance from him. She never asked for a chance. She never questioned him, even that day they were last together as best friends. Seulgi, despite how painful it was to watch him walk away from her, let him. Because it was what would make him happier.

And every time she watches him on stage she can't regret her decision. He looked very happy, very fulfilled. She just hopes that one day, when the time comes that he wants to come home and settle down, it's her he'll come home to.

Johnny noticed how quiet Seulgi has been. He knew his best friend was missing her first love. He cursed at love, at life itself. Why is it always the most difficult for the kindest of people. He knows she's happy, but he also knows that there will always be something missing for her.

"Why don't you just go talk to him? That way he can stop giving me death glares. So that you can't stop giving half-hearted smiles whenever he's around. You're also very obviously still in love with him."

"And say what? Pick me? No thanks. For one, he decided this on his own. Two, that's too melodramatic. You know I'm allergic to that."

Johnny could only shrug. Seulgi can be hardheaded sometimes. He fed her his last fry before gathering the boxes of the take out they ate.

"Alright. I think we've filled quite our share of deep stuff this month. It's almost time for rehearsals anyway so I'll go back and check on the others."

When Johnny went to the back, Seulgi was left to her thoughts. She would be standing on the stage with him today had she pursued being an idol. But she could still dance now and  there's nothing about that she could regret.

She stood up. At first, she was just walking to check the markers on the stage. But the next thing she knew, she was doing spins. She finished on stage right, just before the backstage, and with perfect posture at that. She smiled…

"You still have it in you." A new voice said exactly what she was thinking.

"Thanks." It took quite a lot to not have her voice shaking. "It's not like I gave it up. I still dance. Taeyong owns the studio now. Sometimes I instruct for the kids class." They were all friends back in the day, except for Johnny. The tall man used to hung with a different crowd since he was more of the athletic type.

Jongin nodded at the information. For a second he thought of asking Rahee's parents, his sister especially, to have take dance classes at Taeyong's place instead since the instructor was someone he could swear by. But what would Seulgi think of it. He didn't wanna be mistaken as a stalker. He's definitely not.

"So why didn't you follow me? We were supposed to audition together but you backed out the last minute. You would have still gotten in if you went on a different day." He sounded a little angry but Seulgi couldn't mistake that he also sounded as if he was pouting at that moment. She couldn't blame him. She did break a promise.

"You had the most wonderfully supportive parents, Jongin. It was different for me. And after that day I missed it, I thought it through and decided there were just somethings I can't afford to give up." He saw the face she made. It wasn't much longer than a couple of seconds but this was Seulgi and there was no way he would have missed it. It was the saddest he has ever seen her when she said that last bit. "You know how much I love to eat. I'd go insane if anyone made me go on diets and work-outs."

"It's the first time we talk in years and you can't even be serious for once." He said, obviously upset.

"If I got serious, it would be for a much longer conversation, Jongin. This is neither the time, nor the place for it." Seulgi replied. Truthfully speaking, this was Seulgi's way of holding everything back. He was always someone she could never hide anything from. So if she did get serious now, she was afraid she'd break like a dam and everything she's been keeping all these years will come pouring out. Jongin didn't need that burden, not right now.

"I didn't know you were involved in this." He tried to divert.

"Yeah. Coincidentally, I was on a vacation in Boracay when Johnny called me, needing me to fill in for an emergency situation."

"You seem so cozy with him." Jongin mumbled so only he could hear it, tipping his head down as he dug his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

"I'm sorry. What was that?"

He shook his head. "Oh nothing. I said I was just in Cebu with Moonkyu and Taemin recently." He tried to save himself.

"I know. I saw yours and Moonkyu's posts."

"So you're still keeping tabs on me?" A smirk formed on his lips. But of course she was so quick to defend herself to save face. If he knew that she still looks out for him, cheers him on silently, it would make her look desperate, wouldn't it?

"You're EXO's Kai. You do one thing and everybody talks about it." She neither wanted to acknowledge it nor deny it.

Jongin couldn't help the bubble of laughter that erupts from him. This was classic Seulgi. She was absolutely a terrible liar so when they learned the concept of plausible deniability in politics and governance class, she made sure it was her next best practice whenever she might need to lie.

Both Seulgi and Jongin were distracted from their thoughts when a hearty laughter was heard from backstage and they both knew that was Johnny's voice. The chatter with him meant that there were other people coming.

A wave of urgency befell Jongin. He felt like he had to say something quick before Johnny took her away from him again.

"Let's catch up sometime. At the hotel perhaps? The café is good. I can pick you up from your room."

A wave of disappointment washed over Seulgi. Was it so bad for him to be seen talking to her that he had to end their conversation abruptly? But he was her weakness so she easily nodded to his suggestion. She just truly misses him.

"Sure. The café. I'll just meet you there though since I'll be crashing in Johnny's room."

Jongin tried his best not to look surprised, or appalled, or even green with jealousy. He really had to suppress his emotions. But he wonders if his place in Seulgi's life has been replaced by Johnny.

Rehearsals went on smoothly. They got to finish a run through for each performer. Jongin looked somewhat happy for some time. It had been long since he saw Seulgi's cute concentration face. She had the habit of sticking out the tip of her tongue.

But overall, it was Jongin's members who had the most fun the entire day. It was truly entertaining to watch their main dancer to be easy going and playful one minute, only to stiff up and look rather deadly the next second. When they started practicing their set, Jongin was graceful and flowing. But from below the stage sometimes they'd see Johnny approach Seulgi. He'd sometimes tickle her or whisper something into her ear that would cause her to either laugh heartily or look cute hitting his arm. In those moments, Jongin's movements would be harder, more aggressive.

Seulgi Was coordinating with the local creative director as they watched and guided the last of the local group performers on how to better their set. When it ended, she decided to give the staff and artists a short break before practicing the final song that all the artists had to sing.

Jongin was on his way back to their dressing room after grabbing food with Sehun, Chanyeol, and Baekhyun when he heard Seulgi's nickname being called. It would not have been so significant to him had it not been the nickname he started and takes full ownership of.

"Hey Seul! Let's go out for frap."

"Venti caramel frap with a double shot of affogato?"

"Do you even have to ask?" Johnny replied. He slung an arm around the girl's shoulder and dragged her off. Damnit! This may be the very first time Jongin has ever regretted not liking coffee.

"Jongin! Those are my chopsticks!" Sehun whined, breaking the slightly older male out of his trance. "Go get me a new one."

Chanyeol and Baekhyun were watching Jongin amusedly. "I never thought about it before but yeah, I guess the chopsticks do resemble Johnny" The shorter one teased, trying not to laugh between words.

Chanyeol was shaking his head as he went back with Jongin to grab some chopsticks for Sehun. He grabbed a few extra pairs as Jongin reached for one. You know, just in case.

"You know, I still don't get why you can't just talk to her. Stop torturing yourselves."

"Did watching Baek hyung and Taeyeon noona's relationship fall teach you nothing?"

The man Jongin mentioned looked at him suddenly and pouted. The relationship may have been long over but he still feels bad. Especially when he remembered how many people turned against him and the female. The backlash is always way worse for the girls though.

"So you'd rather she see you get linked to numerous of girls? You're not the least bit scared you'd lose her for good that way?" Chanyeol smartly supplied, only to be supported by their maknae.

"Yeah. You already stopped talking to her since high school graduation. Even just that one year she was left in SOPA, you have no idea how many guys came forward and started confessing to her." What Sehun said got Jongin's attention, his eyebrow arched.

"Why is this the first time I'm hearing about this in years?"

Sehun shrugged. "I didn't think you wanted to talk about her. Your lack of communication and relationship in general seemed like a sensitive subject for the both of you."

"Well…" Jongin pursed his lips in thought. "Did she date anyone?"

"No. But there was this one kid who transferred… Yeah, she let him take her to prom."

"Yugyeom? As in the maknae in GOT7, Kim Yugyeom?" Chanyeol exclaimed and was quickly answered by a nod from Sehun.

"Isn't he like three years younger?" Jongin asked. He didn't have any ill feelings for the group nor for the guy, yet his face showed distaste. Baekhyun suppressed another laugh.

"Yeah but he's also a really good dancer." Sehun looked at him pointedly as if he should have know why she said yes to the young man anyway. "Besides, he asked her in the most unique way. You don't get it, man. When you, graduated that place was like an appliance store during Black Friday and a toy store during Christmas, combined."

"So Jongin was essentially the reason why no one dated her before?" Baek asked.

"Yeah. Basically." Chanyeol answered, grinning so wide as if he just solved an environmental problem.

Just then, their leader entered the room.

"What's up? Why does Jongin look constipated?" The others laughed.

"Oh we were just making him realize how he's still so hung up on Seulgi."

"Oh you mean the creative director, Seulgi?" The four guys nodded in unison. "She dated Minho for a while, you know." Now that got everyone dumbstruck.

"How in the world did that happen?" Maybe Jongin's voice went up more than he intended for it to, but no one decided to comment on it. They all probably sensed the stress in his voice.

"Well he's in Konkuk U's football club. She used to go there. They were bound to meet at some point. And they did. But they broke up out of respect."

Junmyeon was met with questioning looks until Baek spoke. "Respect for who?"

The leader pushed his lips out to point and nod in Jongin's direction. "Minho was ready to take their relationship to the next level before he went into the marines. But he found out about their history. He thought it was probably why Seulgi didn't seem ready, and she probably wouldn't be until their story is finished."

For the first time in their conversation, Jongin looked hopeful. He admits he'd been afraid for so long. He said what he did to Seulgi back then because it was true. Keeping their friendship was an easier way to love her. She'll be safe from the consequences of dating an idol. But it was also the most difficult thing he had to do. Things felt suffocating without Seulgi.

Yes, he may have dated a couple of other girls since he became an idol. But the fact that he's no longer with them only proves they weren't for him. He was happy, sure, but there was always something missing.

For the rest of the practice, Jongin was practically vibrating with excitement. It has been too long since he's properly been with Seulgi. He couldn't wait to have it all back. He couldn't wait to feel like himself again. He couldn't wait to feel the sense of security, contentment, and happiness Seulgi's mere presence provided him.

He couldn't even be bothered to wait for Seulgi to get up to the hotel room she was supposed to share with Johnny. The moment the Korean staff arrived at the hotel, he went bounding for Seulgi.

"Uhm… What are you doing?" Seulgi asked, sparing Johnny a puzzled glance. The tall guy just shrugged his shoulders.

They were at the lobby. Out in the open, for everyone to see. For everyone to eavesdrop on.

"We were going to catch up, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember that part. But we agreed to meet at the café. I was gonna go up and change."

"I've spent too much time putting things on hold. Plus you've always taken so long to get dressed." Jongin had a self-satisfied smile. Yes, he still knew her well. He never forgot a single thing about her.

Johnny nodded, understanding he wasn't needed in the current situation. "You know what, I'll just bring your things up to my room and you can get them from me when you get back. You have your room key, right?" He didn't bother waiting to see her nod to answer his question.

With Johnny leaving, Jongin decided to pull Seulgi towards the doors of the hotel, deviating from the original plan of staying at the hotel café.

"Okay bear, you're being weird. Everyone's gonna see." He cocked a brow at the nickname. He realized she must have understood why he did what he did years ago. It was probably why she never stopped him back then.

The slip of the nickname confirmed everything for Jongin. Just as it is for him, to Seulgi, their relationship had been put on a stand still. Nothing was lost in the years they weren't together. Time had only seemed to make them grow fonder for each other.

"Let them. I'm not afraid anymore." His smile held so much meaning his words couldn't supply. Then he turned to her with a reprimanding expression. A look of worry flashed across her face and that was when he started pouting. "You said you were crashing with Johnny?"

Seulgi let out a laugh. "Nobody ever told you how cute you look whenever you get jealous, huh?"

"I've never been jealous. I'm not the jealous type." He replied, moving a little faster so she falls back a step behind him, and yet he never let her hand leave his. They were going the direction of the Tim Hortons he saw on the way back to the hotel. Whether either of them realized they'd been holding hands, they didn't know and decided not to point it out.

"And yet, any guy who so much as breathes over my shoulder is an instant recipient of your death glare?"

"You're a different case." He said with finality.

"Fine." Seulgi declared, swinging their interlocked hands. "I agreed to catch up. I didn't say I was gonna make it easy for you to just be my bear again."

"I never expected you to."

But they knew better. They never stopped being each other's bear.