Seulgi found Irene on the steps to the library sitting down, her chin propped up by her hand as she looked around the campus. Twenty feet away—Seulgi stopped. She stared. And then she waited. 

There was something about watching someone from afar. Some would say it was creepy. Sure, it probably was, but it didn’t stop Seulgi from doing it. Irene was immensely pretty. 

Eventually, she realized it was almost five in the afternoon and she didn’t want to be late or even show right on time. A little early. That gave a good impression. 

Seulgi walked closer to Irene, but Irene didn’t notice her. Not a single glance was thrown her way. Irene was looking at something from afar, and Seulgi followed where she was looking. 

It was a small kitty, a stray it looked like. Seulgi watched it prance around the concrete and she gauged the reaction Irene gave. Irene leaned in forward, entranced by it, looking like she’d want to jump out of her seat on the steps and take it into her arms. But despite it all, Irene stayed seated, although her face looked like she’d want to do quite the opposite. 

Seulgi approached even closer and finally Irene caught sight of her, eyes perking up and mouth forming into a bright smile. 

“Seulgi!” Irene jumped out of her seat and hurried her way to where Seulgi was. Unlike Wendy’s cold and frankly, y nature, Irene was a breath of fresh air. A nice break. A ray of sunshine.

Irene was, according to Seulgi’s instinct, much more dangerous than Wendy. Who knew what hid under that smile of hers? 

“Eating dinner a little early, don’t you think?” Seulgi teased as they started walking down the pathway to The Village, where all the restaurants and establishments were located. Unlike Wendy’s Rostov’s, The Village was more mainstream. Everyone went to The Village. The social hotspot of Fairchild.

Irene punched Seulgi in the arm playfully. “My—” Irene made air quotes with her hands. “—*team* is very excited. Close to winning it all, y’know? We’re waking up early to discuss plans for drawing voters to our side.”

Seulgi tilted her head to the side. “Yeri told me otherwise. People already have their votes locked in. No changing their minds.”

Irene stayed mum and pursed her lips. She chose to stare ahead at the pathway for a while before she eventually said, “You’re right. I’m going to be honest with you. It’s...you. My team is hopeful for other voters but *I* know that you’re the only voter that we can even hope to get.”

(Frontal Lobe: I sense...truth. Knowing her, there must be something there, but I can’t see anything. 

Amygdala: Maybe she’s really a good girl?

Cerebral Cortex: Ah ! She got you guys good, huh? Don’t listen to these chumps, Seulgi. They don’t know what they’re talking about. Deep down you know that sycophant is slimy and selfish and an utter disaster. Watch your back, girl. Irene is the apocalypse.)

“Then I suppose this dinner is supposed to sway me to your side?” Seulgi remained skeptical, knowing what happened at lunch with Wendy.

Irene laughed nervously. “No! You’re new, right? And I just felt something. Like you’re that *someone*. That you’re important somehow. The way you carry yourself. I don’t think you know, but you have this swagger. Your mannerisms. It feels so…natural. And natural is something you can’t get enough of here in this school.”

“So you approached me because you think I’m—”

“Real,” Irene finished for Seulgi. “You feel real. You don’t wear a mask like everyone else does. You’re...you.”

It had only been five days that Seulgi had been in this school. Five days full of turmoil, drama, and stuff that she wasn’t too used to. And yet, times with Irene seem to be relaxing, like sitting on the docks at Starfield or right now walking to The Village. Being with Irene felt easy, and Seulgi appreciated the respite, however brief it was. 

“Are you real?” Seulgi asked. “Do you wear a mask?”

“Several of ‘em. The one I’m showing you right now is reserved for people I’m up to. If everything goes right, I’ll show you the one I show to people I care about.”

“Care about…” Seulgi smiled. “If we get to that point, I’ll be glad. Ah, here we are.” 

The name was Capo.  It wasn’t like Rostov’s. It was massive and spacious yet the seats were empty and there was a low hum that Seulgi figured was the rich echo of the air conditioner. The hostess on the podium looked bored, twirling her pen around her fingers with dexterity. No bright and color wallpaper or the morose paintings that hung on the walls. The restaurant lacked character. 

“Table for two please,” Seulgi asked the hostess, who merely gave them a simple nod and left with two menus towards a booth in the far corner of the room. No doubt she wanted to be at peace and not hear some whiny schoolgirls gossip.

Seulgi sat still as she waited for Irene to take initiative. Irene seemed like a girl who would. She also seemed meek but Seulgi could see this sort of mischievousness in her eyes that was hard to miss. Something of a magician Irene was. Irene was hiding something, a magic trick, a secret card or maybe an extra coin, but Seulgi didn’t know a single thing and always had to guess. A mystery. 

Eventually, Irene did say something first, hands folded like an anchor on the morning news looking prim and proper. 

“I think friendships are considered successful if the two trust each other.”

“And you think I’m your friend?”

“As a start, yes.”

Seulgi didn’t want Irene to extrapolate that further, lest she may have opened Pandora’s Box without even knowing. In time though, of course curiosity will get the better of her, but this time she kept shut and didn’t press on. 

“And how do you think you’ll convince me to trust you?”

“By telling you the truth, of course.”

“The truth? How?”

Irene pursed her lips. There was something in her eyes that told Seulgi that she thought this was a bad idea, but she was asking it anyway despite the warning signs blaring in her head. She then looked at Seulgi with resolve in her eye, a sureness that was not present just moments before. It scared Seulgi how someone could change that quickly. 

“I’ve done some digging on you. I know who you are.”

Seulgi scoffed. “Everyone seems to know who I am these days. Tell me. What’ve you heard?”

“Other than the obvious stuff? Well, you once escaped the juvenile detention center using nothing but the knowledge of lockpicking and a paperclip. Or the fact that you’re famous among the homeless, you being their—” Irene made air quotes. “—*DJ*. Whatever that means.”

Seulgi laughed as she recalled the memories. “The detention center wasn’t actually me. That’s just the story I came up with to score a date. Is that who you heard it from? Jeongyeon, was it?”

Irene nodded. “We approached her. Well, not me per se, but a f