Something was missing all day, and Soojin didn't really understand what it was.

Everything is as usual, just like any other day when they performed on a music show.

Arrive, put on stage costumes, do makeup, have a snack, play a game on your phone, laugh with the girls while waiting. Chat with the camera.

As usual, Soojin was nervous all day .

Something bothered her, but no matter how many times she thought about this topic, nothing came to mind.

It all became clear when their promotion of a new song came to an end and they were all driving.

Minnie was sitting next to her in the back seat, and it was she who paid attention to one fact.

-You know what was weird today, Soojin?

- What?

- Shuhua never pestered you.

- Exactly! That's why I have such a strange state all day!

- Did you just notice? Yuqi chuckled when she heard the girl cry. She turned to face them, added, “ Shuhua has been weird all day. She never said your name, Soojin -unnie . And even when I mentioned that we were going to have dinner in a cafe, I just kept silent and that's it.

- Shuhua didn't even shout - confirmed the words of the younger Miyeon , sitting down half-turned. She just nodded her head, smiled and told us to have a good time.

- Strange - Soojin could not believe her ears , - what happened to her? Maybe she wanted to come with us?

“No, she has other plans,” Yuqi said , looking at the memebras in disbelief . “And she didn’t say what her plans were, she just asked the manager to take her somewhere.

“So that's why she’s not in the car,” Minnie realized, slapping her forehead. - And I kept wondering if we had forgotten her in that building.

“The manager warned us that she was not coming with us,” the leader of the Soyeon team reminded them again .

- True? We have not heard, you did not tell us this, Soyeon -onni - chided her Yuqi .

- You heard that you all nodded at me when I asked you several times - Soyeon did not give up .

- You know…

-No, - Soyeon interrupted . -Neither the manager nor the maknae told me anything.

- I wonder where she went - thoughtfully biting her lower lip, asked Soojin , already dialing her phone number. After a few rings, the phone was picked up, and a cheerful voice with an accent asked:

- JinJin, did you want something? - extraneous sounds were clearly audible in the receiver, music was playing and a lot of noise.

- Shuhua , where are you? - demanded Soojin , turning on the speakerphone so that everyone can hear.

- Yes, so, I had to go somewhere. Don't worry, I'll be home as usual. I love you, and now I'm sorry, I have to go - hung up.

- Is that all? Did our Shuhua just hang up? You know, unnie, it looks like Shuhua just ignored you - teased Yuqi , although she herself was worried about where her friend went.

- Surprisingly, it's true, our Shuhua has matured - Minnie shed a lot of tears , Miyeon echoed her , only with different words:

- No, I don't want my child to grow up!

Soojin was silent, but she worried that Shuhua just hung up without really explaining anything . She was not nice, it is not nravils I have this situation of affairs.

Shuhua has always said everything Soojin .

Did she have secrets from me? When she gets home, I'll ask. Shuhua will tell me exactly everything. Then we will laugh together, and she, as usual, will hug me and say tenderly, looking straight into my eyes: I love you, unnie. In my eyes, only you.

**

Shuhua didn't believe in her happiness. She never thought that she could be so lucky that luck would turn in her direction and the director would notice her. At the end of the speech, the manager took her aside and said:

- You still want to become an actress?

- Do you have a proposal?

And so, she is here, on the set, waiting for a casting call for a young provincial girl who dreams of becoming a professional dancer. Several aspiring actresses had already been taken in front of her, and she was looking forward to her turn with great excitement.

- You will succeed, just be yourself - the manager encouraged her, she only smiled tightly at him, peering into the depths of the pavilion, from where the noise of music came. It was at this moment that her phone rang, the name "JinJin" flashed on the screen:

- Sorry oppa, I have to answer.

- Just don't tell me where you are - the manager warned her, she nodded, already answering the call.

Shuhua would have talked a little longer, but she was called to the set, so she had to quickly finish and run to audition.

**

Shuhua returned home late at night.

She was incredibly happy and wanted to quickly share great news with the girls. Therefore, while she was driving in the car, she wrote to the general chat and asked everyone to gather in the house.

The manager did not mind, he first of all called the director and told the news.

Opening the doors, Shuhua knew that everyone was waiting for her. All 5 pairs of shoes were in the aisle. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, the girl went inside.

- I'm at home!

Everyone pounced on her with questions and reproaches, but the girl just smiled, looking at them cheerfully.

- Shuhua , why take so long?

- Why didn't you call and warn that you were late?

- Why is this an emergency meeting?

- Welcome back - quietly, in all this chaos of voices, Soojin said , looking at the girl who entered.

She felt relieved , her Shuhua is fine. She is alive and well. She's here.

- I have news and I could not wait until tomorrow - raised my hand up, the girls on command fell silent, waiting with interest for the continuation. - So, I didn't go home with you today. The manager took me in a completely different direction. Guess where?

- And how can we guess here - begged Yuqi , - give at least a hint.

-If you're interested in me, you don't need prompts. It's just all I - majestically stood in a pose.

-I’m interested in you all the time,- she threw, pouting with offended Yuqi , looking at her friend with admiration. Now she was somehow different from the simple girl she knew. Shuhua was radiantfrom within, her striking beauty even more prominent, crushing her poor heart.

- You all shine, Shuhua - voiced the thoughts of Yuqi Miyeon , she meticulously looked at the girl, then: - Did you get proposals?

- Yes - the girl happily nodded her head, smiling, - you are on the right track, Miyeon -unnie .

- Are you getting married? - asked Soyeon in surprise , Minnie jumped up from the sofa, ran up to Shuhua , hugged tightly:

- You cannot get married, you are still so small! No, unnie won't let you go!

- Why did you never talk about the guy you like? Miyeon chided her , hugging her from the other side. - Why did you hide such an event from us?

- What about Soojin ? You said that you only love her.

- Oh, my God, girl, I love you, but sometimes you just are dramatic - disappointed sigh Shuhua, trying to escape from the grip of Onni, but still inconsolable. - And why are you all asking about JinJin?And here she is? And what guy are you talking about all the time? - the girl did not understand, asking for Yuqi 's help .

“When you said that you were proposed to, these weird unnies thought you had a boyfriend,” Yuqi explained , having fun in the scene. - If it's not a guy, then what was it about? What kind of offer was made to you?

- Very pleasant, the one that I have been waiting for a long time - I made another hint, but the memebras were again misunderstood. Shuhua is desperate, doesn't anyone understand me? - JinJin, help out! Help me please!

Soojin was silent, it was painful for her to pronounce the following words, but they had already accumulated in the very subconscious:

- Shuhua , are you cheating on me?

- Oh, god, no! And are you there, unnie? Seriously? Yuqi, at least you please ...

- I’m also wondering who this guy is,- Yuqi said after thinking it over for a few seconds .

Shuhua's patience sank , all the radiance and fun was gone in an instant, she frowned, then seriously examined her friends, rethought something, and then asked to let her go when Minnie and Miyeonmoved away, added:

- You are overplaying, unnie - without showing anything else, she went to her room, after shouting: - Entry is prohibited!

There was silence in the living room, then Soyeon whispered softly:

- We pissed off our maknae.

- How do we fix everything now? Yuqi asked even more quietly , feeling guilty about teasing her friend.

The fact is that the manager had already spoken out, and they knew everything in advance, they just wanted to tease Shuhua , but the joke went too far. The girl was really angry with them.

Shuhua never got mad at them.

Never.

Although no, there was one incident, but no one wanted to repeat that incident in their life again.

Then Shuhua ignored them all for over a month. On camera, she smiled, fawned over unnie, talked about her love for Soojin , played around and fooled around . Turn off the camera but worth the smile disappeared, she frowned and just left without saying a layer of Islands .

The silence was oppressive, the girls felt lonely.

Shuhua's silence is worse than the stress of preparation.

- If now we do nothing, that month will repeat.

- I'll go to her - no one tried to dissuade Soojin .

If anyone could influence Shuhua's anger , it was only Soojin .

Soojin went to the door and knocked not loudly, there was no answer, she tried to enter, but the door was locked with a key:

- Shushu , it's me - she called softly, listened, not a sound. - Shushu , open the doors, please.

- I do not want to see you, Jinjin - he shouted from the room Shuhua . Soojin clearly caught the tears in her voice , so she knocked again.

- Sorry, the other girls persuaded me, but I was against it. I know how important this role is to you. Please, I want to see you, open the doors.

She listened again, heard the creak of the bed, then the rustle near the door, after turning the key. The girl quickly went inside and immediately hugged the crying girl, began to reassure:

- Everything is fine, Shusha, everything is fine, your surprise was a success.

- Was it successful? How? After all, you knew everything - sniffing, asked Shuhua sadly , snuggling closer to her friend's body.

- We found out 5 minutes before you came home, so were always in the dark - assured her Soojin , her hair, enjoying the warmth, which lacked all day.

Shuhua didn't answer, but stopped crying, just accepted the love from Soojin .

- I missed you today, unnie - she honestly admitted, moving away from the embrace, looking tenderly at her friend. - Did you miss me today? Or did you care that I didn't show my love?

- Well, how to say ... - the girl was shy, looking away and trying to escape from the hands of Shuhua , who were now holding her. - I was calm today.

- Oh, then, I don’t love you anymore! - Shuhua was indignant, taking two steps back from the girl. - If my love is not so pleasant to you, I will find someone who will like it! I won't pester you anymore ,Soojin -unnie . Thank you for stopping by, but I want to be alone - I turned away from her, went to the window and began to look into the void, not seeing anything because of the incoming tears to my eyes.

- Do not you love me anymore? - haltingly asked Soojin , slowly making steps towards the younger girl. She stopped behind, expecting any reaction from the girl, but she was silent. Soojin sighed, then hugged her from the back, put her chin on her shoulder, whispered, “ I was not comfortable all the time, Shu, I was really sad. You've been ignoring me all day, and I don't know why. I did something wrong?

- No, you did everything right, you just decided to test yourself, how long I can hold out, not to tell you about my love. It was so hard Jinjin - complained Shuhua , relaxing in Soojin's arms . - I don't like this - she pouted, then turned her head so as to try to kiss her friend, but she deviated. - JinJin - Shuhua whined dramatically, pouting her lips into kisses.

- No.

- But ...

- No. Let's go to the living room, the girls are worried. You will tell us everything about your role - pulled Shuhua by the hand to the exit, laughing at the girl's antics. Just before leaving, Soojin smiled shyly, her voice quieter than a whisper, but Shuhua heard her anyway: - I'll kiss you later ...