Author's Note: Before I start this chapter I want to thank the new subscribers to this story and the readers who followed from the moment I wrote the foreword. It made my day to arrive home from work to see there were 15 new comments to read. I wish I had the opportunity to update sooner but with long early morning hours in the kitchen and weekends busy working retail it really was impossible to find time to write. But the spare time allowed me to piece together and arrange a new chapter that I hope everyone enjoys.

 

Trigger Warning: A bullying scene is included in the flashback scene.

 

 

Irene stood in the doorway of her dressing room trying to calm her temper while the sight of the tall, attractive, new intern who kept a hand securely placed on her girlfriend's hip. 

 

Wendy swatted the hand away while Joy repositioned it back around her waist.

 

"Are you ticklish?," Joy asked in a teasing manner showing her bright smile.

 

Wendy darted her eyes around the room searching for the meteorologist and gulped when she spotted her standing by her dressing room with her arms crossed, her eyebrows furrowed, and her lips in a tight line.

 

The blonde stepped a few feet away and said, "Well it is flu season you know? And I need to be careful because I forgot to get the shot."

 

Joy roared with laughter.

 

She walked closer and pinched Wendy's cheeks.

 

"Can you be anymore adorable?"

 

Wendy squirmed from the contact especially the pressure on her face.

 

Joy continued to laugh but stopped when she felt a presence near them by the sound of the person clearing .

 

Irene stood there with a stern expression on her face and her arms still crossed also tapping her heel.

 

"You must be the new intern.....well I'm here to inform you the producer doesn't tolerate horseplay especially during filming."

 

Irene cocked her eyebrow waiting for a response from the new intern.

 

Joy released her hands from Wendy's face and eyed the meteorologist from head to toe.

 

"Right......the famous Bae Irene, the face of Seoul News Now or is it Jennie Kim?"

 

The older woman crossed her arms tighter to avoid slapping this minor across the face for her display of disrespect to her senior.

 

"Senior? Man that sounded old," she thought.

 

"Love your shoes! Prada I take it," Joy exclaimed in an attempt to lighten the mood.

 

Irene smirked as she directed her attention to Wendy who stood by in silence with slouched shoulders, avoiding eye contact, and playing with her fingers.

 

"JOY! WENDY! COME JOIN THE REST OF THE GROUP!," Ilhoon shouted waving the interns over to the doorway exiting the news studio.

 

"You heard the boss, shrimp, c'mon let's not fall too far behind."

 

Joy reached to grab Wendy's hand but the blonde yanked it away.

 

"Give me a second," replied Wendy in a low voice.

 

Joy shot her a puzzled look.

 

"Fine suit yourself!," she proclaimed as she sprinted to the doorway.

 

Wendy slowly picked her head up to make eye contact with a fuming Irene.

 

Wendy placed her hand on top of the older woman's folded arms.

 

The meteorologist's expression changed to direct a small smile to the younger woman.

 

"I'll be back and we can spend some time together," Wendy whispered as her thumb rubbed slowly over her girlfriend's knuckles.

 

The intense staring contest was interrupted by Joy poking her head into the news studio to call Wendy back to the group.

 

Wendy smiled before she ended the skinship to run to the doorway and down the hall to the elevators.

 

Irene watched the younger woman's movement until she was no longer in sight.

 

As the meteorologist walked pass the anchor's desk to the green screen she overheard Jennie remarked to Kai.

 

"What was that about? Why did it seem like Irene was possessive over the small, blonde girl?"

 

"Maybe she is the cousin Irene always talks about," Kai answered nonchalantly.

 

Jennie seemed deep in thought.

 

"I suppose so but I get this weird feeling there is something more Irene isn't telling us."

 

Kai snickered.

 

Jennie glared at him as she playfully socked him in the arm.

 

"Get over yourself Jennie. Irene doesn't have to share every detail of her private life with her coworkers."

 

Kai shook his head as he focused his attention back to the script.

 

Jennie paused as she watched Irene standing in front of the green screen reciting her lines.

 

"But I thought we were friends," the anchorwoman said under her breath.

 

 

 

The meteorologist was skimming over her notes when she noticed a figure approaching from the corner of her eye.

 

Eunhyuk coughed into his hand as he smoothed out the creases in his suit jacket.

 

"Hi Irene, are you feeling better today?," he decided to start the conversation on a light note recalling the short answers she replied with the other day and the annoyed mood she showed whenever he was near. To be honest, Eunhyuk was a bit fearful to interact with the stunning meteorologist today. He almost turned to leave but stopped in his tracks when his ears caught the lightness in her voice.

 

"Eunhyuk I'm fine but I should apologize if I appeared rude yesterday," Irene said placing her tablet on the side table to direct her full attention to the sports analyst. "I should've never behaved in that matter considering you are too kind to offer me a spare ticket to see my favorite singer in concert."

 

Eunhyuk scratched the back of his neck.

 

"About that........."

 

Irene turned her focus to the doorway where the group of interns came walking through as she made eye contact with the blonde who looked to her and then to Eunhyuk. A small frown formed on her face.

 

Irene's eyes bulged at the realization that the younger woman could misinterpret the close promixity between her and the sports anchor.

 

Irene stepped back several feet to Eunhyuk's surprise.

 

"Is something wrong?," Eunhyuk asked worried.

 

"No no....I'm actually thirsty so I will excuse myself to get a glass of water," the meteorologist said as she slipped away to the snack table.

 

The group of interns were sitting in the producer's office intently listening to the list of duties being assigned to each intern.

 

Wendy couldn't wait for the meeting to be over as Joy would lay her head on her shoulder from time to time. The blonde shaked with nervousness as she scanned the room to see if any of the other interns were aware of Joy's skinship.

 

Yeeun and Elkie shooked their heads and blinked profusely trying to stay focus as they came close to being kicked out of the internship for disruptive behavior. Jaehyun and Jaemin tapped each other on the chest as they whispered but looked directly at Wendy and Joy.

 

Wendy nudged Joy's head off her shoulder and was met with a pout from the younger girl.

 

Wendy straightened her posture but felt an uneasiness.

 

She turned her eyes to look out the window into the news studio only to see Irene sipping water from a plastic cup and crashing it with force before she stormed to her dressing room.

 

Wendy turned in her seat to follow the meteorologist with her eyes but flinched when she heard the door slam. Before she drew her attention away from the news floor, she accidentally locked eyes with Jennie.

 

The anchorwan cocked her eyebrow and smirked at the blonde.

 

" I hope she doesn't suspect a thing," Wendy said in her head.

 

For the short time, the younger woman interned at the news studio she concluded Jennie was a very nosey person especially when the situation concerned Irene. As far as Wendy observed from the interactions between the two women, they were nothing more than coworkers.

 

"So why is Jennie so invested by what is going on in Irene's life?," Wendy pondered swallowing the lump in .

 

"When she finds out we're dating she might try to break us up," Wendy thought as she tried to shake the bad thoughts away.

 

"Young lady are you still with us?," the producer asked witnessing Wendy space out.

 

"Yes ma'am," answered Wendy but whipped her head in the direction of a door opening to watch a more composed Bae Irene strut back to the green screen to film her segment.

 

Wendy wanted to run over and explain to the meteorologist that Joy was smothering her with unwanted attention that she didn't ask for.

 

She huffed as she watched the older woman clip the microphone to her purple blouse and adjusting her pencil thin skirt before the filming began.

 

The blonde adjusted the heavy purple wool sweater she personally selected for she took into account Irene's fondness of the color. She wanted to grab her girlfriend's attention not Joy's.

 

Wait.....girlfriend.

 

Were they girlfriends?

 

They literally started dating one day ago.

 

Was it too early to put a title on their relationship?

 

Was it a relationship or were they just cordial?

 

No both women were adults.

 

They are mature enough to discuss their feelings, sort out any misunderstandings, and express any concerns they felt.

 

"Yeah misunderstandings," Wendy mumbled as she recalled Irene's bad mood caused by Joy being so clingy.

 

It also didn't slip her mind how close Eunhyuk and Irene were standing next to one another a minute ago.

 

She huffed as she directed her focus back to the production meeting.

 

"Well that is all! So let's head out to the news floor and focus on our daily assignments," the producer clapped as the meeting ended.

 

Wendy rushed out of the office hoping to avoid Joy who stayed behind to chat with Ilhoon. 

 

Wendy watched from across the room as Joy flipped her hair, laughed loudly, and kept direct eye contact with Ilhoon.

 

If Wendy wasn't mistaken she would assume Joy was flirting with him.

 

Joy locked eyes with Wendy and pointed her finger directly at the small, blonde.

 

Wendy's eyes bulged as she pointed to herself.

 

"Me?," she squeaked.

 

Joy curled her finger to command Wendy to walk toward her.

 

The blonde's legs felt like jelly. 

 

She walked in slow motion to where Joy and Ilhoon stood.

 

"Y-you w-wanted to speak to me?," she stammered.

 

A big smile appeared on the tall woman's face as she draped an arm around the blonde's shoulder.

 

"Nothing to worry about shrimp. I was explaining to Ilhoon that my learning experience through this internship will be beneficial if I stuck by your side the entire time."

 

Wendy felt the presence of sweat wetting her forehead as Joy pulled her close.

 

"From what Ilhoon tells me, you are the best intern in this class so why would I bother wasting my time with the remaining interns who just don't care."

 

Wendy gave an awkward smile as Joy batted her eyelashes.

 

"But you care, right?," she asked with a slight aegyo in her voice.

 

"Yeah I care," the blonde stated in a small voice.

 

Wendy wanted to hit herself in the head from the embarrassing display she was showing Joy. She always became a blabbering mess in front of beautiful women. 

 

First Irene....

 

Wait Irene did she notice the flirting with Joy.

 

Wendy whipped her head in the direction of the green screen but relaxed when she saw that the meteorologist was too consumed with preparing the segment to look in her direction.

 

Wendy turned back to speak to Ilhoon and Joy as Irene released a deep breath of anger watching the taller woman bat her eyelashes at the blonde. Her left hand started shaking with rage.

 

One of the assistants appeared at her side, "Ms. Bae should I find you an Advil to take for your headache?"

 

"No thank you I'll be okay," Irene reassured with a smile.

 

The assistant left to fix the lighting.

 

"The only way anyone can help me is by kicking out that flirty giant from the internship!," the meteorologist complained through clenched teeth.

 

Her day just got better when she observed Jennie leaving the anchor's desk to stand right next to her.

 

"Hi Jennie," the older woman faked a pleasant greeting.

 

Jennie stood silent for a moment with her arms crossed eyeing Irene.

 

Irene grew anxious from the unwanted attention from her coworker.

 

"I-is there something you want to ask me?," Irene asked hoping to push the conversation along so Jennie can return to the anchor's desk and leave her in peace.

 

Jennie in a breath before responding.

 

"What is your opinion of the two young female interns over there clearly flirting with each other for the whole news staff to see? I mean we live in Korea after all if you get what I'm trying to say. I personally don't have a problem with it but I'm surprised how bold they both are.....well mainly the tall, curvy one. The short one looks like she wants to run away and hide."

 

Jennie snickered watching Wendy walk backwards almost tripping over her feet to avoid Joy standing inches from her face.

 

Irene's chest heaved up and down as she drew in big breaths to control her raging temper.

 

She hated to see how helpless the blonde appeared when the new intern invaded her space.

 

 

 

 

 

Wendy excused herself to assist the camera operator who offered to explain the machine's mechanisms. Wendy was going to assist in filming the morning news broadcast.

 

Joy pouted from across the room feeling abandon by Wendy.

 

Jaemin and Jaehyun appeared on either side winking and displaying creepy smiles at the new intern.

 

Joy rolled her eyes.

 

"Yes boys? Is there something you want to ask me?"

 

Jaemin ran his fingers through his hair.

 

"Actually yes there is, what would you say to attending a frat party as my date."

 

Joy laughed as she patted Jaemin on the chest and caressed his cheek.

 

"What a sweet offer."

 

Jaemin's eyes bulged.

 

"Really! Is that a yes!"

 

Joy nodded her head no.

 

"Sorry but I have my sights set on someone else."

 

"What......,"Jaemin replied speechless.

 

Jaehyun interjected, "How about me then?"

 

Joy roared with laughter as she eyed him.

 

She tapped her chin with her finger.

 

"Let me think about it......yeah if I said no to your friend than the same answer applies to you."

 

Jaehyun stood in shock with his mouth hanging open.

 

Joy twirled around to face the young men.

 

"On second thought let's have a little fun while we are waiting to film. So which one of you is going to be brave enough to dance with me?"

 

She cocked her eyebrow with her hands on her hips.

 

Jaemin and Jaehyun froze in place at a lost for words to encounter such boldness from a freshman.

 

Silence filled the room.

 

Joy tapped her boot on the floor clearly annoyed.

 

"No takers? Okay I will dance alone, no big deal."

 

Joy pulled out her phone and flicked through the song selection until she found "X" by Jonas Brothers featuring KAROL G.

 

She swayed her hips and fanned her hands above her head.

 

She smirked by the effect she had on the older classmen who needed to wipe the drool from their mouths.

 

Joy closed her eyes as she was immersed in the rhythm of the music. 

 

She peeked her left eye to spot Wendy concentrating on the instructions the camera operator relayed to her.

 

An idea came to her when she observed Jennie and Irene standing with stern looks on their faces.

 

"Looks like I have almost everyone's attention," she thought as she swayed her hips toward the direction Wendy was standing in.

 

The chorus kicked in.

 

She said "Ooh, ooh, ooh"

Kiss me like your ex is in the room

Don't you be afraid of something new

If you play it right, you can be that someone 

Yeah, that someone who

Won't leave me lonely tonight

 

 

 

Irene clenched her fist ready to storm to where Joy was dancing heading straight for the blonde.

 

Wendy had her back to the new intern giving her undivided attention to the camera operator to avoid making a mistake while filming.

 

She had a hard time concentrating because of the cheering from the young men.

 

She shook off the distraction assuming it was Joy flirting with them.

 

Joy was inches from an unaware Wendy seconds away from grinding on her.

 

Irene was halfway across the news studio intent on giving this sharky younger woman a piece of her mind.

 

More importantly to inform her that Wendy was off limits.

 

But in that moment, the producer exited her office with a disgusted look on her face watching Joy seductively dance around the news studio.

 

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS! DO YOU THINK THIS IS A DANCE CLUB NOT A WORK PLACE! YOUNG LADY ISN'T IT YOUR FIRST DAY AND THIS IS HOW YOU CONDUCT YOURSELF! I THINK YOU ARE MISTAKEN AS THIS IS AN INTERNSHIP AT A NEWS STATION NOT POLE DANCING 101!"

 

Joy stopped her movements and bowed her head in embarrassment.

 

Wendy turned to around completely clueless to the commotion disrupting the usually quiet production.

 

The producer pointed her finger with authority at a close distance from Joy's face.

 

Ilhoon rushed over to break up the confrontation.

 

"I'M EXHAUSTED FROM TELLING YOUR INTERNS ON WHAT BEHAVIOR IS TOLERATED HERE! THIS IS YOUR LAST WARNING OR THE INTERNSHIP IS OVER!"

 

Ilhoon stuttered an explanation and apology but the producer held her hand in the air while walking in the opposite direction.

 

Wendy had an serious expression on her face as Joy wanted to approach her but her heel and strutted back to the snack table.

 

Jaemin and Jaehyun laughed and high fived each other.

 

Jaemin remarked, "That dance was so hot but how awesome would it be if she danced to WAP!"

 

Jaehyun bit his lower lip studying Joy's figure before replying, "You're telling me."

 

Joy sipped a cup of water as she stared at Wendy.

 

Irene her teeth witnessing the younger intern prey upon her girlfriend.

 

But she reasoned from the reaction of the main producer that Joy's internship will be short-lived at Seoul News Now.

 

Irene snickered picturing the taller woman being escorted out by security.

 

Jennie cleared to remind the meteorologist she was still standing next to her and waiting for an answer to her question.

 

"So what is your opinion about the open display of affection between the two female interns?"

 

Irene thought over the question for she saw the affection as one-sided as Wendy was clearly uncomfortable and didn't reciprocate the skinship.

 

"Because she is interested me," Irene dared to not say out loud.

 

Irene shrugged her shoulders.

 

"Love is love, I guess. The taller one is a little too forward for my taste but they are young so I'm sure it isn't serious."

 

Irene hoped her fake carefree answer would leave Jennie satisfied so she would return back to the anchor's desk.

 

Jennie furrowed her eyebrows deep in thought.

 

"Yeah I suppose you're right........" she trailed off shocked by the older woman's calm reasoning.

 

Jennie turned to look at Irene who locked eyes with Joy.

 

The anger in the meteorologist's eyes sent a silent warning to the new intern to back off.

 

Joy challenged back by looking away in an annoyed matter.

 

Irene snickered.

 

"Whatever Wendy likes me, not you," Irene thought as she observed Wendy adjusting the height of camera lense to fit her height.

 

"Oh wow I never pulled it down this low before," the camera operator joked. "Would you like to stand on a milk crate?"

 

Wendy smiled and turned red.

 

It wasn't the first time someone joked about her short stature.

 

She blushed even more when she thought it wasn't a problem for Irene to melt into her arms like the night before.

 

Her thoughts were interrupted by the producer announcing the news staff had less than ten minutes until filming.

 

Wendy was studying over the buttons on the machine when a tall shadow cast over her. She turned her head slightly to see Joy standing behind her with a wide smile on her face.

 

Wendy sighed, "Look if you are here to cause a scene.....please take that immature behavior to the sophomore boys who relish in the entertainment that you provide."

 

Joy felt a sting of rejection hit her chest and her expression darken.

 

"Was it necessary for you to say that to me? It is my first day after all and I personally requested you to mentor me. Well I suppose I should tell Ilhoon to appoint one of the other upperclassmen to guide me."

 

She placed her hands on her hips.

 

Wendy rolled her eyes as she looked through the lense of the camera hoping Joy would take that as a sign to leave.

 

Was this new intern trying to play the victim card?

 

What happen to the tough exterior and the demanding attitude she presented earlier?

 

Joy begged Ilhoon for Wendy to be her mentor and if the blonde had a say in the decision she would plea with Ilhoon to reconsider the tall woman from continuing the internship.

 

Wendy went about ignoring Joy but the younger woman stayed right by her side.

 

"Whatever don't complain that I'm ignoring you because I have a job to do," Wendy said in her head as she focused on filming the news segment.

 

Luckily her camera angle will capture Irene reciting her lines. She was face to face with the alluring meteorologist the other day but something about witnessing the older woman practicing her profession seemed to leave the blonde mesmerized.

 

She had to remind herself that watching the weather segments were the reason she fell in love with the raven hair woman in the first place.

 

Her crush on Bae Irene developed after a dark period during senior year of high school.

 

Wendy blinked a few times to clear her eyes from the water that formed in them.

 

"Not now when I have the opportunity to film the famous Bae Irene recite the weather forecast."

 

Wendy straighten her back and adjusted the handles to the camera to point at the green screen.

 

The main producer yelled, "ACTION!"

 

Joy stood behind the blonde with her hands on her hips leaning forward attempting to take a peek into the camera lense.

 

Jennie and Kai opened the news broadcast with their usual flirty exchange about their appearances.

 

Wendy felt her eyes becoming heavy from the lame script writing of the staff but her drowsiness was cured by the harsh whispering by Yeeun and Elkie who stood inches away.

 

"Who does she think she is?"

 

"I thought they weren't dating?"

 

"I heard a rumor she is a very nosey person."

 

"The gossip site said Kai was her Uber driver and nothing more."

 

Wendy held back her laughter from the blatant jealously expressed by the freshmen.

 

Wendy looked in their direction to see a very annoyed Yeeun while Elkie continued to coax her friend along.

 

"!"

 

The news studio froze as the explicit word rang in the air.

 

The main producer's eyes roamed the room with a determined sense to find the source of the disruption.

 

She eyed Yeeun and Elkie several times before concluding that the filming will continue but that was the last warning.

 

Jaehyun and Jaemin exited the news studio laughing loudly on the way out.

 

Rage was building inside of Wendy's small body. 

 

Her patience was being tested as she was the only intern to take the internship seriously.

 

She shook her head in disappointment recalling how Joy behaved unprofessionally on her first day.

 

"Unbelievable," she remarked under her breath.

 

The traffic segment was next to film as Jin ran his fingers through his hair while holding a hand held mirror.

 

"Wow handsome!," Joy said startling Wendy who forgot the younger woman was standing behind her.

 

Wendy decided to ignore the new intern.

 

"So she is attracted to Jin okay fine by me maybe she will stop bothering me."

 

A small smile appeared on the blonde's face after that statement.

 

She shrieked as she felt someone pinch her .

 

She faced Joy while rubbing her sore backside.

 

Joy laughed.

 

"Don't get any ideas shrimp because you are still my first choice!"

 

Joy winked at the blonde who focused on her camera duties but didn't miss the stern look on Irene's face.

 

"Great now how am I going to explain this after Joy grabbed my ?," she shook with fear.

 

 

 

 

The raven hair woman pretended to recite the weather prediction in a cheerful matter when in fact she wanted nothing more than to rip out all of Joy's hair.

 

"!," Irene snapped in her head as she attempted to keep calm after she had the misfortune of looking in Wendy's direction right as the younger intern grabbed a handful of the blonde's .

 

Irene's right eye twitched as the scene replayed in her mind like a broken record.

 

She fantasized slapping Joy across the face.

 

"What she deserves," Irene reasoned as she locked eyes with Wendy who blushed and darted her eyes to the ground.

 

Irene tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

 

"Good to know I still have her interest," Irene said in her head as she continued to read the script.

 

She gulped when the aegyo part approached.

 

"Don't forget to warm up with a hot drink!," she chirped while faming her face with her hands like a flower.

 

Wendy cringed from behind the camera lense.

 

The snickering behind her made her whip her head to face Joy.

 

Joy was flashing a bright smile.

 

Wendy frown.

 

Joy shrugged her shoulders.

 

"What's up with you? Why do you look so angry? C'mon the aegyo was pretty pathetic if you ask me."

 

Wendy wanted to counter with "What you can do it better?"

 

But Joy bet her to the punch.

 

"P-p-please treat me k-kindly for I'm a baby chick! Peep! Peep!"

 

She flapped her arms like wings.

 

Wendy stood in horror as she turned back slowly to the camera.

 

"What the.......nevermind," she mumbled as she felt defeated to watch Irene strut to her dressing room right as the producer yelled, "CUT!"

 

The blonde was overcome with anger as she believed her relationship was in danger because of an immature, clingy, and beautiful freshman who targeted her for some unknown reason.

 

Ilhoon called the inte