Momo was looking at this piece of paper trying to figure out this stupid question… how was she supposed to know when the  Goguryeo Dynasty ended? It’s not like she was living during that time period. She was flipping her pencil around with frustration, then heard the teacher say, “5 minutes left… you should be wrapping up by now.”

 

The Japanese girl had started panicking seeing she had eight more questions left, so she just started bubbling in random answers and started to make up answers that sounded right. Once she finished her frantic writing she gave her paper to the teacher with a sulky look and sat back down in her seat with a soft sigh.

 

The bell for lunch had rung making all of the kids stand up from their desks and head to the cafeteria. Momo slowly got up as she walked out the room and made her way to the lunch room, while a certain softball player tapped her shoulder and asked, “How was the quiz?”

 

“Terrible,” Momo said with rolled eyes, “I don’t think they’ve ever taught us any of that.”

Jeongyeon laughed to herself as she patted Momo’s back, “I’m sure you did great.”

 

While the two freshmen girls were walking down the hallway the students all started pushing and shoving each other trying to make way for a specific group of people. 

 

Jennie, like always, was leading the pack of kids, while Yooa and Nayeon were looking at all the students with their bored expressions and acting like they owned the place. 

 

Jimin was winking at his fan girls, who were silently screaming and fainting at him, while Johnny was minding his own business with his hands in his pocket and listening to music.

 

Jeongyeon had actually bumped into Johnny one time after school at a bakery, he was actually a really nice kid and didn’t seem like the type to be apart of the popular crowd. Jeongyeon’s guess was that he was dragged into it, because of his social status and wealthy life style.

 

Once the group of kids had entered the cafeteria everything had gone back to normal letting Jeongyeon and Momo make their way into the cafeteria and grabbing their food. After Jeongyeon’s food incident on the first day of school, the two girls had decided that they would just eat outside since it was less chaotic and could enjoy the fall sunlight and breeze.

 

The two also greeted Sorn on their way out, who had made a few friends already and seemed to be fitting into the school life well. When they both sat down at their usual spot, Momo spoke first, “So did Sana ever bring your bike back?”

 

“No,” Jeongyeon said with an annoyed tone, “She said someone snatched it once she got off it… she said she would buy me a new one eventually.”

 

The Japanese girl laughed as she drank out of her milk carton, “Did Nayeon ever explain to you why she acts that way?”

“No, but I have a hazy idea,” The softball player said as she bit into her apple.

 

Momo would never say anything about it, but the kiss that Jeongyeon and Nayeon shared still lingered in her mind and was messing her feelings, but she was able to push them down and try to lock them up. 

 

She had also been conflicted with telling Jeongyeon why the sophomore girl was such a all the time, she knew it wasn’t her place to say anything, but with the recent events I think it was best that Jeongyeon finally knew Nayeon’s reasoning.

 

“Nayeon joined their group so she wouldn’t get targeted by kids,” Momo said making Jeongyeon raise an eyebrow, “She wanted to protect us… and the rest of our friends from the harsh cruelties of high school, but I feel like she’s going a bit too far don’t you think.”

 

Jeongyeon leaned onto the table and said, “Isn’t that kind of pointless though?”

 

Momo had raised an eyebrow in response, while Jeongyeon had to elaborate, “Think about it… maybe she could’ve joined the student council and still protect us without having to be such a snarky brat.”

“Even then,” Momo said with a somber look, “Those kids have the student council wrapped around their prestigious fingers.”

Jeongyeon narrowed her eyes, “How would you know?”

“I’m in the student council idiot,” Momo said like it was obvious, but scratched her cheek with embarrassment, “I-I mean I just take notes for the meetings… I don’t really participate in the discussions.”

 

“Yeah I know you’re in the student council, but how do you know that the popular brats control them,” Jeongyeon said with a raised eyebrow.

 

Momo gave a frustrated sigh, “I asked them if they ever thought about dealing with the popular kids’ powers… and they said there was nothing they could do, Jennie and Johnny’s family provide for most of the school’s stuff and if  those two were to get some punishment… it could be the collapse for Yongha. I mean who do you think pays for all the expensive stuff in this school.”

 

Jeongyeon nodded her head along and thought ‘God I thought things like this only happened in K-Dramas’ She sighed and said, “So there’s nothing we can do to help her out?”

 

Momo shook her with a glum look, “I guess we have to leave everything in her hands.”

 

The two went back to eating their lunch and talking about whatever came to mind. While Momo was in the middle of her rant about school, someone yelled from a distance, “Yoo Jeongyeon?”

The two girls turned their heads around and were shocked with what they were seeing. Jennie was standing in front of them with a bunch of boys and girls trailing behind her, the two freshmen girls gulped at the girl in front fo them.

 

They were both wondering what they had done for Jennie to be standing in front of them, Nayeon wasn’t with her so there was no way that the girl could be backing them up.

 

“You are Yoo Jeongyeon… right?” Jennie said with a bored look.

 

Jeongyeon slowly nodded her head, then the popular girl pulled something out of her back pocket and said, “It’s an invitation for your family to attend my dad’s company reveal for a new car.”

 

The softball player hesitantly took the letter and raised an eyebrow, “Why is my family included?”

 

“My dad had a company dinner at your family’s restaurant,” Jennie said looking at her finger nails, “He wants your dad to be the head chef for the party.”

 

Jeongyeon widened her eyes in realization and thought ‘That’s why Dad didn’t want me and Seoyeon working that night’. Jennie was walking away, when Momo asked, “Do I not get one?”

 

 “Uh… distinguished guests only,” Jennie said as she turned her head around and looked at Momo with disgust, “You can be Jeongyeon’s plus one or something… not like she would pick you anyways since you’re a nobody.”

 

Then the girl started walking away with all of the guys and girls trailing after her. Momo gave a sulky look, while Jeongyeon rubbed her back and comforted her, “Hey… if there is a plus one I will definitely pick you.”

 

Momo gave a small nod and was trying to hide the embarrassment feeling she was having, but Jeongyeon could see right through the Japanese girl and felt really bad that she was brought down like that.

 

The rest of lunch was pretty awkward and quiet, but luckily the bell that lunch had ended rang. Momo quickly got up from the table leaving Jeongyeon behind and sighing to herself, “I hope this doesn’t get to her head.”

 

The school day had ended and Jeongyeon was waiting in the school lobby since Seoyeon said she would drive her home today, but the softball player didn’t want to leave Momo behind.

 

The softball player was leaning on the wall trying to spot a specific Japanese girl in the crowd, but she spotted someone else walking down the stairs. Nayeon was surrounded by all of her fan girls as she was walking to the main entrance.

 

The older girl had spotted Jeongyeon, then started to make her way towards her with a powerful stride. The softball player narrowed her eyes in confusion as she watched Nayeon approach her with a smug and flirty look.

 

Nayeon stood in front of her with a flirty smile and said, “Hey Yoo… are you going to Jennie’s dad’s party.”

 

Jeongyeon had a small blush on her cheeks, but still had her tough face on and said, “Why would that matter to you?”

 

The older girl put her finger under Jeongyeon’s chin and smirked, “Just wanted to know if a cutie like you would be going there.”

 

Jeongyeon was confused and in shock with what was happening, but she could see the look Nayeon was giving that said ‘Just go along with it’ then Nayeon walked away as her fan girls just glared at the softball player and continued to follow the sophomore girl out of the school.

 

Momo had watched the whole exchange from the top of the stairs and gulped to herself ‘Why do I even have feelings for Nayeon? I’m not chic and cool like Jeongyeon, of course someone like Nayeon would fall for her… maybe Jennie is right… I am a nobody.’ The Japanese girl was giving shaky breathes, until Jeongyeon had spotted her and waved, “Yo Momo… you want to ride with me and Seoyeon back to my place?”

 

The Japanese girl snapped out of her thoughts and said, “I-It’s fine… I can just walk back home or call Hana to pick me up.”

 

Jeongyeon kept insisting, “Come on… just ride with us you’re not being a burden or anything.”

 

Momo didn’t like Jeongyeon’s word choice, but she was trying to hold it in and not let her anger get the best of her, the two girls had just mended their friendship. Seoyeon had walked in and said, “Jeongyeon are you ready to go? Gas money costs a lot these days,” then Seoyeon saw Momo and said, “You need a ride?”

 

The softball player gave one last pleading look to Momo, who just shook her head and said, “I’m fine Seoyeon… I’ll just walk home.”

 

Momo quickly walked past the Yoo siblings and made her way out the main entrance making Jeongyeon give a doleful look at the younger girl. Seoyeon looked at her younger sister and said, “Is everything good with her?”

 

Jeongyeon gave a small worried look and shrug, “I have no clue.”

 

-

 

All of the girls were gathered at Jeongyeon’s house, except for Momo who was still hadn’t shown up. Jihyo gave a concerned look and asked Jeongyeon, “Where’s Momo?”

 

Jeongyeon shrugged, “I don’t know she was a bit off after some girl had made fun of her.”

 

Nayeon froze and said, “W-Was it Jennie?”

 

The softball player gave a small nod making Nayeon give a soft sigh and said, “I-I’m sorry about her, but she can be a bit snarky at times.”

 

“I didn’t realize,” Jeongyeon said with an exasperated look, “She literally called Momo a nobody.”

 

Mina was the first to speak up, which shocked everyone, “Momo’s not a nobody… I don’t care what anyone says about her, but she is the MOST caring person I have ever met, anybody who disagrees with me is willing to get punched in the face.”

 

Everyone widened their eyes in shock hearing such a violent statement from such a quiet girl, then she shrunk back into her spot and said, “S-Sorry.”

 

Sana rubbed the girl’s back and gave a comforting smile, while Tzuyu said while tossing a soccer ball in her hands, “Alright Jeong… why did you tell us to come here? I’ve got homework.”

 

The softball player pulled something out of her back pocket and revealed the invitation that Jennie had given to her earlier, “I got an invitation for some rich party… and was wondering if anyone else had gotten one.”

 

Tzuyu was the first one to respond, “My family got one.”

 

“Wait why?” Dahyun said with confusion, “I’m not trying to sound rude, but how is your family so important that you got invited?”

 

Tzuyu shrugged, “My dad is the Chief Editor of one of the biggest Korean magazines, so I guess he’s important enough for the rich family.”

 

Dahyun nodded then said, “What about you Jeongyeon?”

 

“Jennie’s dad ate at my family’s restaurant and I guess he liked his cooking, since he wants my dad to be the head chef,” Jeongyeon’s aid with nonchalant shrug.

 

The pale girl then said, “Did anybody else receive invitations?”

 

Nayeon spoke up, “I got one, because I’m friends with Jennie, so it was an automatic invite.”

 

Chaeyoung had also spoke up, “My family got one as well, my dad had painted one of Mr. Kim’s paintings a few years ago so I guess that was good enough for an invite.”

 

Dahyun had pouted and crossed her arms, “And my family didn’t get an invite.”

 

“Well don’t worry,” Nayeon said with a reassuring smile, “Our families can bring a plus one… so let’s decide who’ll bring who.”

 

Tzuyu spoke up first without any hesitation in her voice, “I can bring Sana.”

 

All of the girls had widened their eyes, including Sana which made Tzuyu stare back at everyone else, “What can I not take Sana?”

 

“No,” Jihyo said quickly, then quickly smirked, “Is there something going on between the two of you?”

 

Both of the girls had blushed in embarrassment and tried to avoid eye contact with everyone and each other, while Tzuyu softly answered, “N-No.”

 

All of the girls had chuckled, knowing full-well that there was definitely something happening between them, then Chaeyoung spoke up this time and said, “I can take Mina if that’s ok with her.”

 

Dahyun had gave an offended look towards her younger girlfriend, “Why didn’t you choose me?”

 

“Sorry Dubs… I’d rather pick someone who won’t embarrass me at a rich party,” Chaeyoung said with a small chuckle.

 

Jeongyeon laughed as well and said, “You’ll be my plus one.”

 

Nayeon then whispered to the younger girl, “What about Momo?”

 

“I don’t think she wants to go… I think what said to her Jennie may have affected her in some way,” The softball player said with a worried look, “I mean you know Momo’s not the best with handling insults… it get’s to her head.”

 

Nayeon slowly nodded her head, then looked at Jihyo, “I guess I’ll be taking you?”

 

Jihyo widened her eyes, then gave a small blush as she scratched her cheek, “Uh… D-Daniel already asked me to be his plus one.”

 

“What!?” Nayeon and Jeongyeon said at the same time. Nayeon then asked, “When did he ask you?”

 

The volleyball player gave a nervous chuckle, “Uh… today actually. His father was one of the lead designers for the car, so his family got an invite and he wanted me to be his plus one.”

 

Nayeon nodded then looked at Jeongyeon, “Then I guess I’ll take Momo.”

 

“Did you not just hear what I said?” Jeongyeon whispered harshly.

 

Nayeon rolled her eyes, “Don’t you think it’s a douche move to not invite Momo.”

 

“I would rather her not go, then have her mental health at stake here,” Jeongyeon said with a firm tone.

 

Mina then spoke up again, “I-I can talk to Momo for you guys, but I have to agree with Jeongyeon on this.”

 

“Ok… it’s settled then,” Nayeon said with a shrug not wanting to argue any further, “Mina talks to Momo and if she doesn’t want to go, she doesn’t have to go and if she does I’ll take her,” then looked at Jeongyeon, “You fine with that?”

 

Jeongyeon nodded her head, then Dahyun asked, “When even is this party?”

 

The softball player looked at the invitation and read through it and said, “Uh… this Saturday.”

 

Dahyun groaned, “And how are we supposed to dress?”

 

Jeongyeon gave a deadpan expression, “Obviously something fancy and formal… what do you think you’re supposed to wear? A clown suit?”

 

The pale girl shrugged with a small laugh at Jeongyeon’s joke, “Who knows… the rich people are pretty weird.”

 

Jeongyeon rolled her eyes, while Nayeon said, “So we’re all good? Everyone is happy with who they’re going with?”

 

All of the girls had all nodded their heads in agreement, they all started to part ways heading back to their own homes. Jeongyeon watched as the youngest Japanese girl was walking out the front gate, then caught up with her and said, “Are you sure you can talk to Momo?”

 

Mina gave a confident nod, “Momo’s like an open book, she’s pretty easy to read sometimes, so I don’t think it will be too hard.”

 

Jeongyeon smiled and placed a hand on Mina’s shoulder and whispered, “Thanks… you really don’t have to do it.”

 

The Japanese girl shook her head and reassured the older girl, “She’s helped me when I was in a rough patch… I think it’s time I repay the favor.”

 

-

 

Mina walked into her home and yelled in the house, “Is anybody home?”

 

Hana had emerged from the living room and said, “Just me and Momo, your dad’s working and my mom had some stuff to grab at the store… and your brother is probably smoking a blunt somewhere.”

 

The youngest Japanese girl had no clue what a ‘blunt’ was, but she hoped it was something good. Mina nodded at the girl as she took her shoes off and made her way into the living room, “Where’s Momo?”

 

“She’s been in her room ever since she got home,” Hana said as she flipped through the channels on the TV, “I tried talk to her, but she wouldn’t budge.”

 

Mina gave a nod as she walked up the stairs and softly knocked on the door, “Momo… it’s Mina.”

 

“Go away,” a mumbled voice said behind the door.

 

Mina softly chuckled as she said, “I also live in that room Momo… open the door.”

 

She heard a soft click and turned the door knob seeing her older step-sister with such a downcast look. This was the first time she had ever seen such an energetic person with a depressed aura, it was quite shocking. 

 

“You don’t look so good,” Mina said with a worried expression.

 

Momo had trudged over to her bed and face planted into her pillow and said, “School wasn’t great.”

 

The younger Japanese girl nodded her head as she sat down on the bed and rubbed Momo’s back and said, “Do you want to talk about it?”

 

“Not really,” Momo said turning her body so that she was looking at Mina, “It’s a dumb reason.”

 

“Nothing’s a dumb reason... if that’s what you think then you’re clearly wrong,” Mina said with a reassuring smile.

 

Momo nodded then gave a small exhale, “Do you think… I’m a nobody?”

 

Mina furrowed her eyebrows in anger, “No… you are not a nobody… whoever thinks that needs to get their brains checked, come on Momo, don’t think like that.”

 

The older Japanese girl had tears in her eyes, “I-I hate it… I feel so empty most of the times, because I feel like I haven’t accomplished anything in my life, it’s like I’m here in this world without any purpose, like you’re currently becoming one of the best gymnasts, Tzuyu too with soccer. Chaeyoung and Dahyun are fine art prodigies, I-it’s crazy that for someone as young as you guys, you already have a passion for something.”

 

“Then make a purpose for yourself,” Mina said with a stern voice, “I’ve seen you dance before… and it’s amazing. Sure dancing isn’t an ideal job in our society, but what makes it ideal for others… is that it gives happiness and a feeling of success for them.”

 

“Besides Momo, you’re still a freshmen. You have time to decide what you want,” Mina smiled as she kept rubbing Momo’s arms, “Even me… I might not even continue gymnastics when I go to high school.”

 

Momo widened her eyes and said, “Why? You have D1 potential, you want to throw that away?”

 

Mina shrugged, “Like I said… we’re still young we have time to decide on what we want to do.”

 

The older girl nodded her head in agreement and smiled at her younger sister, “Thank you… for talking with me.”

“No problem,” Mina said with a small smile, “We may not be blood related, but we still have a family bond.”

Momo gave a big grin, then Mina said, “Also… I know this isn’t a good time, but Nayeon invited you to go with her to Jennie’s party.”

 

“N-Nayeon did?” Momo said with wide eyes and a small blush on her cheeks, “I-I thought Jeongyeon was going to bring me?”

 

“Well… Jeongyeon figured you wouldn’t want to go, because of what happened at school,” Mina said trying to remember what had happened, “So she picked Dahyun to go with her.”

 

Momo pouted, but was also happy that Nayeon had decided to pick her as her plus one, “So is everyone in our friend group going?”

 

“Yeah… I’m going Chaeyoung,” Mina said with a small smile.

 

Momo smirked and internally thought ‘Nice Chaeyoung… I see you making the moves’, then she asked, “Wait… so when is the party?”

 

“This Saturday I’m pretty sure,” Mina said with a thinking look.

 

The older Japanese girl gave a small nod, then came to the realization that she didn’t have any formal dresses… well not any that would fit her currently, “Do you think my mom will bring us to the mall tomorrow to buy some dresses?”

 

“Hopefully,” Mina said with a shy look, “I-I also need a dress.”

 

“It’s settled then,” Momo gave a beaming look, “We’ll go shopping tomorrow for our dresses.”

 

-

 

Jeongyeon was currently standing outside in her white dress waiting for a certain pale girl to come outside of her house. She mentally thought ‘It’s been 10 minutes Dahyun… what could you possibly be doing in there?’ As if her thoughts were being read Dahyun had opened the door and apologized, “Sorry for the wait… my mom was making sure I looked presentable for this party.”

 

The pale girl was wearing a black dress that went down to her ankles. Jeongyeon raised her eyebrows and teased, “Wow… the black dress really makes your skin pop out.”

 

“Shut up,” Dahyun said as she was walking towards the car, “This is the only formal dress I have that fits me right now.”

 

Jeongyeon smiled as she opened the car door and sat down in the passenger side, while Dahyun took her seat in the back. Seoyeon was going to their driver to the party, since, since the Yoo parents had gone to the party early so their dad could prepare the food.

 

Seoyeon was also wearing a formal dress as well and said, “You all buckled up back there… not trying to get pulled over.”

 

Dahyun nodded in the backseat, then Seoyeon started to pull out of the drive way. The pale girl was looking out the window and asked, “Is this your first time going to a fancy party?”

 

Seoyeon didn’t answer since she was focused on the road, while Jeongyeon answered, “Uh… not that I know of at least, but my Dad has been invited to some fancy gatherings.”

The pale girl sighed and said, “It’s what you think it is… just a bunch of high class society people walking around and trying to make connections with other high class people… nothing too special, there’ll probably be a dance during the party or something.”

 

Jeongyeon turned her around from the front seat to look at Dahyun, “And how would you know?”

 

“I was invited to play Piano for some rich party last year,” the pale girl said look out the window, “It was cool and all, but everyone there was intimidating, because they were looking at you hoping you would mess up, thankfully I’m not playing piano this time.”

 

The three girls in the car were quiet for the rest of the ride, Jeongyeon had fallen asleep at one point during the tip and was abruptly awoken when Seoyeon pushed her lightly and said, “We’re here numskull… clean yourself up you got drool all over your face.”

 

Seoyeon was holding out a tissue for her younger sister, who quickly took it and started to gently rub her face trying not to ruin her makeup. When she was done cleaning her face she looked in front of her and saw the massive house that was in front of them.

 

Dahyun looked over and whistled in astonishment, “Woah… it’s bigger that I thought it would be.”

 

“Are you sure this is the right address?” Jeongyeon looked at Seoyeon with a questionable look, “This place looks like a palace.”

 

Seoyeon nodded as she looked at her phone and said, “Well according to the GPS… this is the place.”

 

The girl was pulling up at the entrance where someone was holding a clipboard and wearing a fancy suit. The oldest Yoo girl pulled her car next to him and rolled her window down, while the man asked, “Family name?”

 

“Uh… Yoo Family… Yoo Seoyeon, Yoo Jeongyeon, our plus one is Kim Dahyun,” Seoyeon said with a serious tone.

 

The man looked at his clipboard for a few minutes, before finding the family name and nodded his head, “Alright… you’re checked in, keep going straight down and you’ll find the valet parking.”

Seoyeon had given her thanks as she pulled into the entrance and saw the large garden that was on both sides of the car and the massive fountain that was in the middle. Dahyun was in awe, “This isn’t a home… this is a freaking castle.”

 

Jeongyeon had nodded her head in agreement, then Seoyeon stopped in front of the valet parking where a woman had walked over and said, “I can take your car from here,” then handed Seoyeon a small piece of paper, “this is your ticket so we can retrieve your car… do not lose it.”

Seoyeon nodded her head as she got out of the car, making Jeongyeon and Dahyun get out as well. While they were walking out an older man had walked up to them and bowed, “My name is Jungsu and I’m a butler here in this mansion.”

 

“Follow me,” the old man said as he started to walk up some stairs.

 

While the three girls were following the butler, they were starting to take in the amazing statues and scenery of the Kim Mansion and were still getting amazed by how huge it was.

 

The three girls had arrived at some large steps and at the top was double doors were the guests were going through. The butler smiled, “Just go up these stairs and through this double doors and you’ll be in the lobby… enjoy the party.”

 

The butler had walked away to help other guests that seemed confused with the layout of this place. While the girls were walking up the stairs they looked behind them to see the landscape of the place. Dahyun whistled, “Imagine waking up to this scenery every day… I would wake up early all the time.”

 

Jeongyeon chuckled as she dragged the pale girl to the entrance and, once again, where astonished with the inside. The lobby was grand with two double stairs on each side of the wall and another entrance below them, the party guests were walking around and chatting with others wearing their fancy clothes, while were butlers walking around with drinks on trays. 

 

Dahyun said, “How are we supposed to find everyone in this place… it’s like a maze.”

 

Seoyeon also agreed and said, “First let’s find where the main event is taking place, then we can look for your friends.”

 

Dahyun and Seoyeon were walking away, while an dazed Jeongyeon was still looking around the place. When the softball player had turned back she noticed that the other two girls were gone, she cursed to herself and started walking around the lobby.

 

She was looking around the place and noticed the paintings that were around the wall, most likely past people who lived in this house. While she was looking around someone had tapped her shoulder making her turn around and widen her eyes in shock.

 

Johnny was standing there, wearing an expensive suit and giving a small smile, “Hello Yoo.”

 

Jeongyeon gave a lopsided smile, “H-Hey Johnny... didn’t think you would be here.”

 

The boy laughed as he said, “Well I am cousins with the Kims so I have to be here.”

 

Then he grabbed a drink from of the trays that the butlers had and handed it to Jeongyeon. The softball player grabbed the drink and took a sip out of it, then gave a look of disgust, “What is this?”

 

“Champagne I think,” Johnny said as he took a sip, “Doesn’t taste good when you first try it, but you’ll get used to it.”

 

Jeongyeon gave an awkward nod as she put the glass drink on another tray that was coming by and said, “Uh… do you know where the party is taking place?”

 

“Yeah,” the boy said with a nod, ”You want me to take you there?”

 

Jeongyeon gave a shy nod, making Johnny start walking towards the other entrance in the lobby. The hallway was bustling with people walking around and looking at the paintings. The softball player asked, “Uh… who are these people on the walls?”

 

“Ah,” Johnny said as he stopped to explain, “They’re paintings of past Kim Family members,” then he pointed to a painting that was farther down, “That over there is Jennie’s dad… the current Head of the Kim family.”

 

Jeongyeon nodded in response and said, “Wow… there’s a lot of them.”

 

Johnny laughed, “Yeah the Kim family had some weird dispute back in the day, so there was a lot of ‘Head’ Kims, but it was resolved after Jennie’s grandpa’s death.”

 

‘Of course there was some family conflict in such a rich family, why wouldn’t there be’ Jeongyeon thought internally, then Johnny started to move again down the hallway.

 

Jeongyeon followed suit and was walking behind him, then she asked, “What about your family? I heard you guys were super rich too.”

 

Johnny chuckled, “Yeah I guess we’re rich, but it kind of .”

“What do you mean?” Jeongyeon said with confusion, “Isn’t being loaded with money like the best thing in the world?”

 

“That’s what everyone thinks,” Johnny said as he placed his empty glass on a tray a butler was carrying, “But in hindsight… money is nothing but just a material that society has praised to show that you’re wealthy and successful, nothing else.”

 

Then he gave a somber look, “Money just blinds you from the real truth.”

 

Jeongyeon tilted her head in confusion from the philosophical rant, making Johnny laugh in response and say, “Sorry… ignore what I just said.”

 

The two had finally arrived in another room and it was larger than the lobby. There were chandeliers all over the ceiling and with pillars and archways supporting the ceiling on the sides… it looked like the inside of a palace

 

There were many people being seated at tables and others that were walking around and shaking hands, while their were waiters that were serving food.

 

Johnny said, “This is the main dining area… or the ball room. It’s where most parties take place in the Kim Mansion.”

 

“You can probably find your friends around here,” The boy said.

 

Jeongyeon gave a small bow and said, “Thank you.”

 

Johnny gave a small smile as he walked away from the girl and disappeared back into the hallway. The softball player was walking around trying to find anyone she knew, then she spotted Dahyun sitting at a table with Seoyeon and her mother.

 

Jeongyeon made her way to the table and sat down next to Dahyun. The Yoo mother looked at her youngest daughter and said, “Where were you?”

“I got lost, because some people forgot to bring me along,” Jeongyeon said staring hard at Dahyun and Seoyeon.

 

Seoyeon just laughed, while Dahyun was blankly staring at another table. While the Yoo mother was scolding Seoyeon, Jeongyeon looked at the pale girl and said, “Have you seen anyone else?”

 

“Momo and Nayeon are over at that table,” Dahyun said pointing at the front of the room, “But I haven’t seen anyone else.”

 

Jeongyeon looked over at what Dahyun was pointing at and almost groaned at what she was seeing. Nayeon and Momo were sitting with Jennie’s family, so that meant… Jennie was sitting with them. 

 

The softball player felt bad for Momo, because she could see that the Japanese girl was slightly uncomfortable and trying to avoid eye contact with the rich girl. Dahyun had also noticed Momo’s face and gave a worried look and turned to Jeongyeon, “Is that the Jennie girl you guys were talking about?”

 

Jeongyeon nodded as she leaned back into her chair, “Yeah... I hope she’s ok.”

 

The softball player then turned to her mother and asked, “How’s Dad?”

 

“He’s fine,” her mother said with a small smile, “This might be an opportunity for the restaurant to be well-known.”

 

Jeongyeon also nodded in agreement, then asked after looking at the other empty seats, “Who else is supposed to be sitting with us?”

 

As if on cue another family was taking their seats, when Jeongyeon looked at the movement of chairs she widened her eyes seeing Jihyo sitting across from her, while Daniel took his seat next to her.

 

The Yoo mother gave a small bow to the two other adults, who also bowed back. Jeongyeon whispered from across the table, “Hey Jihyo.”

 

Mrs. Yoo had noticed the younger girl as well and smiled, “Hi Jihyo… how have you been?”

 

The softball player gave a small bow in response and said, “It’s nice to see you to Mrs. Yoo.”

 

The table was quiet after that as Jihyo started talking to Daniel about other things. Jeongyeon whispered to Dahyun, “How long have those two been a thing?”

 

The pale girl raised an eyebrow as she looked at Jihyo and Daniel, “Uh… in all honesty, I don’t even think they’re dating… guess they’re just really, really close.”

Jeongyeon gave a small nod, not fully believing the pale girl, but went with it anyways. The softball player turned to Jihyo and whispered, “Hey have you seen anyone else?”

Jihyo stopped talking to Daniel and blushed in response, “I-I bumped into Sana and Tzuyu earlier.”

 

“Why are you blushing?” 

 

Jihyo perked up and widened her eyes in response and quickly said, “I-it’s kind of hot in here… you know?”

 

-

 

Tzuyu’s family had also arrived at the Kim mansion and were astounded with the building. Seolhyun, who was wearing a tight dress, whistled and said, “This is how successful I want to be,” then turned to Tzuyu, who was wearing a black dress with some glitter on it, “When you become a famous soccer player… you better buy a house like this.”

 

Tzuyu rolled her eyes in response, while Sana, who was wearing a bright red off-shoulder dress, stood next to her and said, “Man… what are these people’s jobs?”

Sana, Tzuyu and Seolhyun were walking up the steps, while the oldest girl answered, “Well Mr. Kim is the CEO of the leading automobile industry in the world and his wife is some ambassador in the United Nations, so makes sense that they’re loaded… and have political influence,” then whispered, “Rumor is going around that the president is here.”

 

The three girls continued walking, until Sana spotted something in the garden and said, “Can we take a look around in the garden?”

 

Tzuyu wasn’t so sure, she didn’t want to intrude on someone else’s property while Seolhyun shrugged, “I don’t see why not… it’s not like you’re stealing anything,” then the older girl started walking off, “I’m going to head inside… I’m starving.”

 

As the two girls watched Seolhyun walk away, Sana had grabbed Tzuyu’s hands and started leading them into the massive garden. The two were mindlessly walking around with their hands intertwined while Sana awed at the plants, “If I was ever rich… I would make myself a large garden like this.”

 

Tzuyu tilted her head, “You like flowers?”

 

Sana nodded with a big smile as she bent down to smell one of the colorful plants, “I’ve loved them since I was a kid, my mom would always give me flowers in our garden back home in Japan.”

 

Reminded of her home back in Japan, her dad was still living with them and she didn’t mind, but her mom was a completely different story… it was like the woman didn’t even acknowledge that he existed. The lacrosse player tried her best to get them along, but it seemed like both parties didn’t want to get along.

 

She sighed in frustration just thinking about it, which Tzuyu noticed quickly and asked, “Something wrong? Did the flowers hurt your feelings?”

 

“Haha very funny,” Sana said with a mocking look as she guided them throughout the garden still admiring the flowers.

 

Tzuyu laughed and asked, “Seriously though what’s up… you’ve been kind of weird lately,” then she gave a panicked look, “Is it about the kiss… l-look I’m sorry about… I don’t what prompted me to do that.”

 

“No… it’s not the kiss that’s on my mind,” Sana laughed as she found a bench that was facing the mansion and where you could get a good view of it from outside and patted for Tzuyu to sit next to her, “You have divorced parents right?”

 

Tzuyu narrowed her eyes in confusion and was shocked with the abrupt question making Sana say, “Sorry that was out of the blue… y-you don’t need to answ-“

 

“Yeah my parents are divorced,” Tzuyu said cutting off the older girl, “It’s been a year since they got divorced… I don’t want to be liar and say everything was fine, but it … seeing the two people and your definition of love just fall apart right in front of you, it was devastating for me.”

“It took time, but I eventually earned to accept that my parents didn’t love each other anymore,” The Taiwanese girl said with a sad look, “but I know deep down they still care for each other.”

 

“Why do you ask?” Tzuyu said staring at Sana with a concerned look

 

Sana sighed as she placed her head on Tzuyu’s shoulder, “Well… my parents are divorced too and my dad came back recently because he lost his job and needs a place to stay.”

 

“I haven’t seen him for all my life and all of the sudden… BOOM… he’s at our front door begging for a place to stay,” Sana said with an awkward laugh, which died out quickly, “I’ve done everything I can to get my parents to get along, but it’s like… they hate each other.”

“Like I said,” Tzuyu said as she caressed the older girl’s knuckles, “Deep down… they probably still care for each other, but it takes time for them to realize.”

 

Sana gave a small smile as she looked at the mansion in front of her, “Should we start heading inside… your parents might get worried about you.”

 

The Japanese girl was getting ready to stand up, but Tzuyu had pulled her down making their faces centimeters apart from each other. Sana’s heart was beating like crazy, while she stared into the younger girl’s eyes, then she closed the gap between the both of them.

 

They had kissed for a few seconds, before Tzuyu parted lips and said, “What are we going to tell the others?”

 

“What do you mean?” Sana said with a pouty look since she broke the kiss.

 

“About us?” Tzuyu said with a worried look, “I mean… you know how society is with same relationships… h-how would our friends react?”

 

Sana laughed internally seeing the worried expression on the younger one’s face, “I think they’ll be fine. I really don’t know what their preferences are, but I haven’t seen them take any interests on boys… well except for Jihyo.”

 

While the two girls were back with making out with each other, there were two people standing behind a pillar, embarrassed and blushing from they had just witnessed. Jihyo turned to Daniel and said, “Do not say ANYTHING about what we just saw.”

 

Daniel turned to Jihyo and acted like he was zipping his mouth closed and the two turned back around from where they came from and acted like they didn’t see anything.

 

-

 

Mina was walking in with the Son family in the ball room as they tried to find their table, while Mina was looking around the dining room she had spotted Momo at one the drink tables and said to Chaeyoung, “I see Momo… I’ll catch up with you in a few minutes.”

 

The small girl gave a small nod in response, slightly disappointed, but she wasn’t going to stop her. As Mina went over to Momo who was drinking her tenth glass of water, she smiled in delight seeing her younger step-sister walking towards her.

 

Mina also smiled and asked, “So how’s the party so far?”

 

“Boring… I was expecting some dancing or upbeat music, but this music is the type Dahyun would melt over,” Momo said with a small laugh as she acted like she was playing piano.

 

The younger Japanese girl gave a small chuckle as she also grabbed a small cup of water from the table and looked around the room, “This place is HUGE… just walking around in this room would make me feel lost.”

 

Momo had also nodded her head in agreement as she took a sip out of her cup, then younger girl asked, “Where are you sitting.”

 

The dancer pointed to the front of the room and said, “I’m sitting over there,” then she gave a small whisper, “With Nayeon and Jennie.”

Mina had choked on her water and making her think internally ‘This couldn’t go any worse then it could have…’, then she gave a worried look and held Momo’s hand, “Are you fine with sitting with someone like that? Jennie seems kind of… mean.”

 

Momo gave a small chuckle and nodded her head in response, “I’ll be fine… besides I have Nayeon sitting with me, luckily she’s been shielding me from Jennie everytime the girl would try and make a conversation with me.”

 

The younger girl was about to say something, but there was a tapping noise surrounding the room making all eyes make there way towards standing in the front of the ball room on the upstairs balcony.

 

Momo whispered, “I think I should go and take my seat now.”

 

Mina gave a small nod as she also went back to find where Chaeyoung and her family was seating, once the Japanese girl had found them she had taken her seat next to the younger girl and asked, “Who’s talking?”

 

“I think it Jennie’s dad?” The artist said as she took a sip out of her glass, “But I’m not really sure… all rich business men look the same to me.”

 

Mina had given a small chuckle in agreement as she took her attention to the man standing on the balcony introducing himself as Kim Jinsang… so definitely the father of Jennie.

 

There were many reporters and journalists in the room taking pictures of the man, while he was giving a speech on thanking everyone that was able to attend this party.

 

Chaeyoung felt like she was about to fall asleep, but Mina kept jabbing her on the side trying to get her to stay awake. After the fifth jab on the side Mina laughed, “You good sleepyhead?”

The small girl rubber here eyes and said, “I just hate these kind of things where people just talk and drone for hours and hours… how long has it been?”

 

“It’s been only 5 minutes Chaeyoung,” Mina said with a giggle.

 

The small girl had blushed and smiled hearing the heavenly giggle from the Japanese girl, it was like honey to her ears and she wished she could hear that giggle everyday. Chaeyoung leaned into her chair and said, “What’s he talking about?”

 

“Something about the new car he’s revealing and the people he’s thankful for the support,” Mina said, “Nothing too interesting so far.”

 

Chaeyoung then said, “Want to walk around? I kind of want to check out the paintings that were in the hallways… pretty sure I saw one of my dad’s old paintings.”

 

Mina looked at Chaeyoung, then back at to the man who was still speaking and said, “Yeah let’s go… I’d rather walk around then sit around listening to some speech.”

 

Chaeyoung gave a big smile, then whispered to her mom, “Hey… me and Mina are going to walk around for a bit.”

Her mother raised an eyebrow, then said, “Alright… just make sure you don’t cause any trouble young lady,” then smiled at Mina, “Make sure Chaeyoung doesn’t do anything… irresponsible.”

 

The Japanese girl gave a small nod, while Chaeyoung pouted at her mother, “Do you not trust me Mom?”

 

Her mother gave a soft laugh and didn’t answer her question making Chaeyoung give an offended look, while Mina was already leaving the table and said, “Come on Chaeyoung… lets go.”

 

The two girls had s around the other tables and finally made their way out the ball room and were in the hallways. Mina looked at the younger girl and said, “Where do you want to go first?”

 

“There were these nice paintings in the hallway when we came in… let’s go check those out,” Chaeyoung said excitedly as she started trotting down the hallway, while an amused Mina followed right behind her.

 

The two girls were walking down the hallway, while Mina looked at the paintings casually… but Chaeyoung on the other hand was analyzing these paintings like she was a professor critiquing their students’ artworks. 

 

In all of Mina’s time knowing Chaeyoung, this was the first time she had ever seen the trickster being so serious… it was kind of scary. The small girl was looking at the painting with intent, then finally spoke, “The painting is pretty good, but there’s some discrepancies with it,” then she pointed to a certain spot, “There’s a weird smudge there that isn’t on the original painting, plus the coloring shading is slightly off.”

 

Mina widened her eyes in shock hearing the feedback of the other girl and asked, “So… this painting isn’t the real painting?”

 

Chaeyoung nodded in response and said, “Not really surprised though… almost every rich family has this painting in their house somewhere, so of course there would be duplicates of it.”

 

The small girl started walking down the hallway looking at the other paintings, while Mina said, “You must really know about paintings?”

 

Chaeyoung gave an embarrassed nod, “Y-Yeah… sorry for geeking out about it.”

“Don’t be embarrassed,” Mina said with a soft laugh, “it’s nice seeing you actually being serious for once and not playing tricks.”

 

The small girl had laughed in agreement, then they stopped in front of a painting that was placed at the end of the hallway. The two girls stared at the painting for a minute, then Chaeyoung said, “This is the painting that my dad had made.”

 

The painting showed a baby laying in a small crib with roses surrounding it. Mina thought it was a beautiful painting, but she knew there was a deeper meaning to it so she asked the expert, “So what’s the meaning behind it?”

 

The artist shrugged, “I never really asked my dad, but I think it had something to do with my birth. My dad had sold this painting before I was born. I was doing research about my dad and found out he had sold this painting to the Kim Family, for a lot of money.”

 

Mina nodded her head listening to the younger girl’s story, the Japanese girl was still looking at the painting and noticed that there were thorns digging into the baby’s skin and asked Chaeyoung, “Have you noticed the thorns?”

 

Chaeyoung squinted her eyes to see what Mina was talking about and nodded her head, “Yeah… I think it has something to do with the fact that something as pretty as a rose could harm something like a baby, but that’s my take on it.”

 

Mina nodded her head listening to the girl’s analysis, then she felt something buzz in her pocket. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and saw a text from Nayeon in the group chat.

 

Grandma: You guys want to meet up at the lobby? I know a cool place where we can hang out for a bit.

 

Dubbie: How can we trust you and not think you’re gonna murder us?

 

Grandma: Haha very funny, but seriously meet up at the lobby.

 

The Japanese girl showed her phone to the small girl and said, “Let’s go?”

Chaeyoung nodded as the two girls started walking down the hallway hoping they wouldn’t get lost in this huge place.

 

-

 

Nayeon and Momo were lounging around in the hallway. The two were staring at the decoration all over the walls, then the Japanese girl said, “Thank you for, you know, stopping Jennie from talking to me.”

The older girl gave a soft smile, “Anything for you Momo… I know you’re uncomfortable for her, besides you and Jeongyeon will be my top priority.”

 

Momo gave a small blush and said, “N-Nayeon are you really trying to protect me and Jeong… with the way you treat other students, it seems like you do it for your own self-enjoyment.”

Nayeon widened her eyes in shock and sighed, “I know it seems like I’m a mean girl, but I only do it when Jennie and the others are around… I-I can’t blow my cover.”

Momo slowly nodded her head, for some reason her heart was beating super fast and her vision was only focusing on the older girl in front of her. Did she really fall for Nayeon? She’s stupid… she knew there was going to be so many issues with this.

 

Momo gulped, while Nayeon was still admiring the interior of the mansion. The Japanese girl said, “N-Nayeon… I need to tell you something.”

 

The older girl stopped looking and took her attention to her younger friend and tilted her head, “What’s up?”

 

The Japanese girl didn’t know what to say, she hadn’t really thought this through and was slightly fumbling on her words, “I-I… I-it’s kind of complicated,” she gave one small sigh then said, “Nayeon I really li-“

 

“WHAT UP PARTY PEOPLE!” 

 

Momo and Nayeon turned their heads toward the abrupt noise and saw Dahyun, Jeongyeon and Jihyo walking into the lobby. Momo gave a disappointed smile, while Nayeon smiled seeing the three girls.

 

Jeongyeon and Nayeon stared at each other for a few minutes, making Momo feel slightly jealous and awkward, while Dahyun gave a concerned look at the Japanese girl. Nayeon snapped out and looked at Jihyo and teased, “I’m surprised you came… I thought you would be clinging onto Daniel the entire time.”

Jihyo stuck her tongue out in a mocking way, then asked, “Where’s everyone else?”

 

Chaeyoung and Mina had walked into the lobby as well from another hallway, the small girl sighed in relief, “Oh thank god we found you guys… me and Mina thought we were lost.”

 

All of the girls had smirked at the two girls, thinking that Chaeyoung had finally made a move with the Japanese girl, but in reality it was just two friends hanging around and looking at the artworks.

 

Jihyo gave a teasing smile, “So what did you two?”

 

Mina gave an innocent shrug, “We just looked at some paintings the Kim Family had,” then looked at Chaeyoung with a smile, “Chaeyoung gave me an interesting perspective on paintings.”

 

The small girl gave an embarrassed smile as she sheepishly rubbed her neck and was about to say something, but Sana and Tzuyu had walked in from outside making all of the girls, except for Jihyo, raise an eyebrow at the two girls.

 

Nayeon asked, “What were you two doing out there?”

 

Sana had blushed, while Tzuyu gave a blunt answer with a nonchalant face, “We were just walking around. Sana wanted to check out the garden.”

 

Jihyo’s cheeks were still red, which Jeongyeon had noticed and asked, “Are you ok Jihyo? Your cheeks are really red,” then she placed her hands on the younger girl’s forehead, “You’re not catching a cold are you?”

 

The volleyball player removed Jeongyeon’s hand and stuttered, “I-I’m fine… it’s just a bit hot in here.”

 

The older girl gave a suspicious nod, then turned back to Nayeon and asked, “So what did you want all of us out here?”

 

The oldest girl smiled, “There’s this one spot in this mansion where you can see the whole city from a balcony... and it’s the most beautiful scene in the world.”

 

All of the girls looked at each other, then Dahyun raised an eyebrow, “Are you trying to kill us?”

 

Nayeon had rolled her eyes and pointed a finger at the pale girl, “If I were to murder all of you, I would kill YOU first.”

 

Dahyun have given an offended look, while Nayeon was beginning to lead the girls down a hallway. All of the girls were trying their best to be quiet and not get caught, because they were definitely not allowed in this part of the building, but with 18 heels clicking on the ground… it was kind of hard.

 

Luckily they had managed to not get seen by any butlers or maids and had arrived on the other side of the mansion. Nayeon pushed open the two doors that were at the end of the hallway and revealed the starry night in front of them.

 

They proceeded to make their way out, while Nayeon made sure no one was watching them and closed the doors behind them. The oldest girl walked over to the railing with the others to see the view in front of them.

 

They were all in awe the view and being able to see the city skyline and it’s bright lights. Jihyo looked at Nayeon and said, “You’re right… i-it’s beautiful.”

 

Nayeon wrapped an arm around her younger friends shoulder and said, “And you didn’t believe me?”

 

“It’s sometimes hard to believe you,” Jihyo said with a soft chuckle.

 

While the two girls were bickering with each other, Tzuyu had spoken up and said, “I’ve never seen the city from this view… it’s like a whole different perspective. Usually when you look at the buildings from the ground it makes you feel small and inferior, but looking at it now... it feels like we’re the superior ones.”

All of the girls looked at the Taiwanese girl with confusion. Sana had asked curiously, “What do you mean?”

 

“We’re literally standing in the richest building in Korea,” Tzuyu said, “Doesn’t it make you feel a little bit inferior?”

 

All of the girls were agreeing with Tzuyu, while Nayeon had taken this opportunity to grab Jeongyeon and lead her to a secluded place on the balcony where no one could see them. Momo had noticed the two trying to remove themselves from everyone, which made the Japanese girl slightly jealous and was saddened but what she had witnessed.

 

The scene of Nayeon and Jeongyeon was filling her mind and it hurt her everytime just thinking about it ’Stop getting jealous, it’s not like Nayeon likes you or anything… but she said she enjoyed the kiss?’ She sighed in frustration which Mina had noticed and asked, “Are you ok?”

 

Momo looked at her younger sister and wrapped an arm around her neck and said, “Yeah everything’s fine.”

 

Once Nayeon and Jeongyeon were alone and none of the girls had noticed them, the oldest girl trapped the younger one between the wall and whispered, “Finally we’re alone.”

 

The softball player was blushing madly and not trying to look into Nayeon’s eyes, not wanting to fall into her charms and said, “We see each other everyday at school Nayeon.”

 

“Yeah, but still…” the older girl said as she started to wrap her hands around Jeongyeon’s waist and whispered into her ear, “We’re never alone.”

 

Chills ran up Jeongyeon’s back after hearing that and lightly pushed the older girl off of her and said, “What’s up with you? You’re usually not like this.”

 

Nayeon was confused and said, “What do you mean?”

 

“Being so flirty,” Jeongyeon said like it was the most obvious thing in the world, “You’re never like that… and you hate it when people touch you a-and now you’re touching me like there’s no tomorrow.”

 

“At school you were being flirty with me in front of all of our classmates,” she said with an exasperated look, “Are you just putting up an act to mess with me… or do you genuinely like me?”

 

Nayeon didn’t know what to say, the words were on the tip of her tongue, but nothing would come out. After a brief moment she sighed and said, “I-I really like you, but there’s just something else that’s been digging into me.”

 

“And what’s that?” Jeongyeon asked.

 

Nayeon didn’t want to say anything, she didn’t want to drag Jeongyeon into her own problems… the younger girl didn’t deserve that, so she just kept shut and said, “It’s nothing… really. Promise you won’t get worked up over it?”

 

Jeongyeon raised an eyebrow and slowly nodded her head. Nayeon then kissed the top of the younger girl’s lips and said, “Come on… let’s go back. I’m pretty sure they would’ve noticed by now that we’re gone.”

 

Nayeon backed away and started making her way back to the rest, while Jeongyeon was still leaning against the wall with many things and sighed in frustration, “Im Nayeon… what are you hiding in that head of yours.”

 

-

 

A/N: Holy cow... this is one of the longest chapters I've ever written lmao, also… there are subtle hints about future chapters some are obvious, some aren’t, I hope you guys enjoyed it.