Of course Soyeon would notice the who kept barging into her Wednesday lecture.

The class size wasn’t big to begin with. As her second year Music Theory professor liked to say, the only thing rarer than a music student is a music student majoring in Music Theory and Composition.

Most of her cohort mates were performance majors or taking classical music studies. That meant that almost all her classes were made up of largely familiar faces. After three years of college, it would be difficult for her to not notice a new face. Especially when said newcomer seemed insistent on regularly disrupting lectures with her presence.

The first time, she hadn’t really been paying attention. It was an 8am lecture and even though she was now a third year, morning classes never really got easier.

She only noticed the girl’s presence when she took a seat beside her. The heaviness of the bag caused it to hit the ground with a thunk, and it distracted her from the steady beat playing in her ears. Soyeon frowned at the interruption.

She always sat in the same place in the lecture hall; towards the back, and to the side. It was good for her to exit the hall when the lecture was over, and it also allowed her to multi task during lectures.

She didn’t have many friends in this class, or in school in general, but that didn’t really bother her much. She had been home schooled for a number of years and she was generally shy around other people. Considering all the factors, she was lucky to have found a number of close friends who accepted her for who she was.

If she wasn’t writing, she was producing, or at the radio station doing either. She barely had time to study, much less the time to maintain more shallow friendships than necessary.

She wasn’t what one would call “a social butterfly”; far from it, actually. Working with people was not an issue for her, but she didn’t think it was very necessary to go out of her way to socialise and be popular. Plus, the advantage of bidding for classes alone meant that she didn’t have to save seats for anyone or align her course map with another person.

Miyeon had once told her that when they first met, she found her very intimidating. However, after they grew closer, she realised how wrong she had been. Soyeon hadn’t taken any offense to her comment because she had to admit there was truth behind it. It was difficult to be taken seriously in the creative industry. With the amount of competition in her cohort alone, she couldn’t afford to have people think of her as a pushover. While a lot of people either underestimated her or called her strange for spending her time writing instead of mingling with the rest of the cohort, she didn’t have the time to pay them any attention.

Most of the time, even in lectures, her mind would be running all over the place, rummaging through possible ways to rearrange contemporary songs and come up with lyrics to fit her own song concepts. Some might call her dedicated, some would say she was obsessive. Yet, it was just what Soyeon had to do as a full time radio host, full time student and full time aspiring musician. Hence, she hardly made small talk with other students during class unless she had good reason to.

Thus, she couldn’t understand how a complete stranger would willingly choose the seat next to her, despite the many available seats in the room. She had never seen her face in any of her classes. If she had, she would have definitely remembered her. Soyeon was sure of that.

She gave the other student a quick once over. She had long, dark hair that curled over her shoulders. Her skin was rather fair and altogether, her youthful features gave her a rather sweet and innocent image. Yet, she also had a form of nervous energy that Soyeon felt was out of place. She looked at her, almost bouncing in her seat as she pulled out her laptop and set it on her table. It was then that she noticed the 2020 freshman orientation logo on the back of the screen. She sighed.

Well, that explained a lot.

Out of paranoia, she scanned the lecture hall for familiar faces, lest she be the one who came to the wrong classroom. The hall was big and students were widely dispersed, which made looking for specific people challenging in the morning. Her class list had a healthy mix of fourth and third years, so she expected not to recognize a good number of students anyway. She told herself to wait for five more minutes before panicking.

After a few minutes, the door clicked shut quietly and there were a few murmurs from the other side of the hall. Kim Chungha was walking up the steps. Soyeon immediately felt the tension dissipate. She wasn’t just a familiar face. They’d worked together a couple of times, both as classmates as well as professionally. She was one of the most multitalented students in the cohort but she was also one of the most down to earth people she’d ever met.

The older girl happened to meet her eyes and her face lit up in recognition. She sent her a friendly smile and wave before she sat down with the rest of her friends. She recognised a few juniors like Yoojung and Doyeon, who had declared majors in song writing, so she was assured that she was in the correct class. Soyeon turned to the unfamiliar girl again.

She definitely wasn’t someone who would willingly start a conversation with a random stranger. However, she also felt sorry for the new girl. University students usually wouldn’t go out of their way to help a stranger if they weren’t getting something out of it.

She battled with her dilemma for a few minutes until the professor walked in. She exhaled in relief.

“Okay class, a few things before we get started.” There was a rustle and Soyeon glanced to her side. The girl was taking out her notebook. The first thing that Soyeon noticed was the pastel pink cover and the stickers. She couldn’t help but stare at it in disbelief.

Was this girl actually planning to take notes?

It was the first class of the semester. Students could still change their courses and it was still bidding period. Moreover, every student knew that the real lecture only started after the introduction to the course, which lasted about 20 to 30 minutes.

Soyeon almost scoffed. Whoever she was, this girl was definitely a freshman. However, just in case, she powered up her own laptop. This professor had a tendency to pinpoint random people in class so she couldn’t be too complacent.

“Firstly, I don’t tolerate tardiness. Punctuality is key. This applies to both submissions and lectures. Time waits for no man, or woman, and neither will I, which is something I’m sure you all would have understood by now.” Soyeon leaned back in her seat, hands in her pockets. Professors always gave similar “warnings” at the start of every course. It wasn’t new, nor was it actually that serious. Considering that it was not uncommon for professors to forget about their own lectures or arrive late, these “warnings” were usually only intimidating to exchange students, or freshmen.

She peeked at the girl again. She was really scribbling in her notebook. Soyeon shook her head.

“Secondly, please don’t bring food into the class. If you need to eat, do it before or after your lesson.” She smirked at that. Almost every third and fourth year student had mastered the art of eating without getting caught by now.

“Now, if you can assess the presentation slides, I’ll now be explaining the assessment criteria and graded projects due in the first half of the course, as well as your final examination which will go towards your grade at the end of the semester.” There were a couple of groans from around her. Soyeon simply shrugged. The intensive course outline was one reason why there were a number of students who delayed taking this course until their final year. For Soyeon, she was planning to do her internship a semester early. So, completing this course would be put her at an advantage over anyone else who applied.

There was a shuffle and she felt an uncertain tap on her shoulder.

Ah, there it was.

“Uh, excuse me... this isn’t ‘Introduction to Linguistics’, is it?” Soyeon shook her head. It was difficult to keep a straight face as she watched the panic set in. The girl’s eyes widened comically as she swept everything on her table, notebook, pencil case, laptop and all, into her bag. As she stood hurriedly, the chair screeched in protest, alerting nearly the entire class to her predicament. Soyeon grimaced as the freshman raced down the stairs, bowing in apology as she left the classroom in embarrassment.

So, the lost freshman was a language major. It was a pity that she would probably never encounter her again. Soyeon had already completed all her university core modules so she hardly had classes with the lower years, not that she minded. The younger students were more overzealous and they didn't know how to proportion their time and energy efficiently. Hence, seniors preferred to work with other seniors.

The professor treated the entire debacle as if it had never happened. He was probably used to it happening by now.

“Okay, now that we’re all settled, welcome to ‘Contemporary Writing and Production’.” Soyeon finally sat up and opened a word document. She hoped that the girl, whoever she was, managed to make it to her class without missing anything too important.

Then again, it was the first lesson of the school term. It was probably not very important anyway. The professors always followed the slides and the information was spoon fed to the juniors during the first few months. The freshie should be fine if she didn’t make her tardiness a habit.

She was pretty cute though.

~~~

The second time it happened, she almost couldn’t believe it.

It was the third week of school. Surely, the freshman would have learned where her class was by now. Yet, the door opened in the middle of her lecture, revealing a familiar cherub face with a confused expression as she glanced around the room. The girl’s lips were spread in a brilliant smile which faded as she sensed that something was amiss. She glanced down at her phone and scrolled frantically.

She was wearing a white cardigan over blue shorts and she had tied her hair into pig tails. Her bulky bag had since been changed to a more practical sling bag, which looked good on her, Soyeon had to admit.

She looked at the clock. The nature of the timing suggested that the girl was probably supposed to have a tutorial. She was a Language major, so her core tutorials would be in the building across campus.

The professor glared at her unexpected entrance and she meekly excused herself with an apologetic bow.

Soyeon smiled again and shook her head.

Freshmen, really.

~~~

The third time the freshman barged into the class, Soyeon actually rolled her eyes. She had to be doing this on purpose.

The girl really was cute. It was just a shame that she was so scatter-brained.

She had been in the midst of planning a mix-up of songs for her next special broadcast. She, or rather, DJ Jelly, along with a couple of other seniors, were tasked to do a collaboration single together as a project to promote the radio station. The actual recording wasn’t due to take place until a month later, but she wanted to have something to show her guests during their first meeting.

 

She needed something exciting. The first draft of the lyrics that were submitted to her gave her a superhero vibe. She liked it. The concept was about ordinary people taking control of their lives and showing the world how powerful they really were. The girls that the producers had in mind were all powerful vocalists and performers. She really was the maknae, in more ways than one. All the more, she needed something to prove her worth.

It was the squeak of converse shoes that drew her attention away from the lecture. The girl was speaking into her phone, a bit too loudly for someone who wasn’t supposed to be there. Everyone turned to her. Soyeon was sure that most of the students were aware of her existence by now. A couple of them might even be taking bets.

“So then, that thing- oh... wow.” She looked up and stopped in her tracks. The expression of disbelief on her face caused Soyeon to snicker under her breath.

The professor sighed noticeably as a couple of students turned to the unwelcome visitor. She couldn’t help the flicker of amusement she got, watching the other girl get flustered by her repeated error.

“I-I’m sorry, professor, please excuse me.” She pivoted and sped out the door as fast as she had come in.

Soyeon turned back to her working draft and changed the title.

‘Wow Thing’. That might actually work.

~~~

The fourth time it happened, Soyeon couldn’t even find it within herself to be surprised anymore.

The girl had walked into room during a presentation, realised her surroundings, sighed loudly, and exited the room without uttering a coherent sentence. She was carrying a cup of iced coffee this time, which ironically hadn’t helped her case.

It was entertaining enough for her to smile and it took her mind off of the presentation. She even penned it down as part of her lyrics due to how ridiculous the situation was.

For some reason, she hoped the girl would be forgetful enough to make the same mistake again.

Miyeon repeatedly called her “whipped” over lunch and she vehemently denied the claim even as she pushed the free salad that came with her meal towards the older girl. The only way to shut her up was through food, after all.

Miyeon narrowed her eyes, but she accepted the rejected bowl of vegetables. It went without saying that any vegetables would end up being discarded and both of them didn’t want to waste food if they could help it. Soyeon grinned in triumph.

“You know you’re gonna have to eat this someday right?”

“I eat some vegetables.” Soyeon replied confidently while she unearthed the pile of fries covered with bulgogi meat excitedly.

“Tomatoes are fruits, and corn is a type of grain. I mean actual vegetables, like this.” The older girl cut her off quickly and waved a slice of cucumber in her direction. Soyeon jerked back exaggeratedly and made a face that conveyed her deep disgust.

“I might die, unnie.” She warned, picking up a fry and dropping it unceremoniously into . She chewed thoughtfully and savoured the taste. “Then who’ll take over the radio station?”

“We could always leave it to Jisoo and Lisa. I’m sure they’d love to give it a go until they find a replacement.” Miyeon grinned as Soyeon gasped in mock horror before bending over in laughter.

“Unnie, no! They’d turn it into a talk show with their pets featured in every episode!” She could already see it happening.

She loved having Chaeyoung‘s friends over in the studio, despite how much of a ruckus they usually made. She had gotten to know them after inviting Chaeyoung to collaborate with her as a guest host and the response was so great that the bubbly senior ended up joining as a regular host. Miyeon was the one who recommended Chaeyoung since they were part of the same vocal class, and Soyeon trusted her judgment.

The seniors were really close and she had been worried about whether she would be able to talk to them. However, her concerns were put to rest when she realised they were just as friendly and playful as Chaeyoung, even if they were a few years her senior.

 

Jisoo had been the first one to break the ice. Soyeon remembered her as the “unnie with the kind smile” who approached her first to thank her for inviting them and for taking care of Chaeyoung. Jennie had been more reserved in the beginning, but after a couple of meetings, she had warmed up and lowered her guard. Lisa hardly acted her age, so she often forgot that Lisa was actually a year older than her. 

Now, more than six months later, she had grown accustomed to random visits from one or more of the girls. They often came to use the facilities or study in the lounge area, not that there would be much studying happening once they arrived. It was part of the reason why Miyeon suggested that they remove the access restrictions for the door so that they wouldn’t seem so exclusive. The other reason was that the school was terrible at updating their security systems so the likelihood of one of them getting locked out was very high.

If the girls didn’t bring up their various pets at least once a day, she would assume that they had been possessed. Chaeyoung would even bring up her beloved Joohwangie that she left behind in Australia so that she wouldn’t be left out, and Soyeon would make her feel better by reminding her that she didn’t have a pet.

If Idle Radio was handed over to them, things would indeed be entirely different.

“That would be kind of funny, wouldn’t it?” Miyeon snickered. “A different kind of Idle Radio, but it still fits the name since they act like kids anyway.”

“Nooo, that can’t happen!” Soyeon choked out in between giggles. The bulgogi fries were left on the table, forgotten for the time being as she tried to catch her breath. “Okay, I won’t die. I’ll just get really mad.”

“Aww Soyeonie, so I still have time to prepare the eulogy?” The chestnut haired senior gave her a mysterious smile which garnered her suspicion.

“Who says you’ll be the one drafting the eulogy, unnie?”

“Of course it’s going to be me! I’m your favourite and the prettiest unnie.” She didn’t give Soyeon a chance to interject. “Besides, I think ‘I-Die’ would be a lovely title, and I want to copyright it for myself.”

Soyeon couldn’t be more affronted. She crossed her arms petulantly.

“I won’t miss you at all when you graduate.”

Contrary to her intention, her words only induced the senior to let out a string of giggles as she scooted her chair closer. Soyeon whined in protest but didn’t move away when Miyeon leaned against her and her forearms and head placatingly, playing along even though they both knew her words held no truth. It was hard to keep a straight face around her, much less maintain her irritation or anger.

Okay, maybe she’d miss her a little bit.

Not that she’d ever say that to Miyeon. Her ego would shoot through the roof and she’d become even more insufferable.

~~~

“Are you crazy?”

Soyeon almost answered “Yes”, just to see what her reaction would have been. People who called just to leave rude comments were like flies who buzzed around, completely unnecessary, yet unavoidable.

The moment the previous caller started talking about his girlfriend, she wanted to groan. She hated giving relationship advice on-air. It was too public. There was always room for one of the parties to call back for a vengeful response.

She shook her head as she listened to the caller ramble about his new dog and girlfriend.

Men.

To her, the situation was dumb. If this guy really loved his girlfriend, he would have talked about the subject earlier and if the reaction was as strong as he claimed, he should have remembered it before getting a dog. He shouldn’t need someone else to tell him that. There wasn’t an excuse for him to pretend that he was the victim.

She told him that it was his choice. However, she knew better. Humans were selfish. If he was asking someone for advice, it meant that he had already made his choice but he wanted someone to back him up or someone to pin the blame on, when things went south.

In the many relationships that she had witnessed, at least one party would be in denial of the state they were in. People involved in anything were already less objective in their assessment because of their direct involvement. She didn’t want to get involved in the messy tangles of someone else’s relationship, unless it was to prod about and reveal sides they hadn’t considered.

Hence, when the next caller responded so angrily, her first suspicion was that she was the girlfriend of the previous caller. She was both relieved and curious when she realised she wasn’t.

“But I pity whoever listens to your advice.” Soyeon raised her eyebrows at that reply. So, the girl was trying to be snarky as well.

If she had wanted to be more sarcastic and start a fight, she would have answered that she too, would pity whoever followed her advice blindly. However, if the person was really that naive and weak willed such that they didn’t understand and address the implications behind her comments, then they deserved the wake up call that was coming. Yet, she wasn't going to bite the bait that was dangling in front of her. This girl was just testing her patience.

“A friend of the girl who got injured after you advised her to do something outrageous to impress someone.”

Soyeon sat back in her seat, trying to recall who she was referring to. She received a lot of calls as DJ Jelly, from students of all years, and she honestly couldn’t remember all of their names and issues with a snap of her fingers. The rude girl would have to do better than that.

However, as a DJ and a host, for that matter, she couldn’t exactly leave a call hanging like that. It was unprofessional and she would likely get several complaints. To the school, approving her program had been risky enough, despite the popularity of it. It wasn’t easy to trust someone who had no experience running a radio station and hosting a radio show. Thus, she figured that improvisation would be the best way out of the situation.

“Wait, hold on. Did I tell her to attempt something physically dangerous to her own health?” She knew herself and her own limits. Although as DJ Jelly, she was allowed to push the limits of what was considered ethical, there were some boundaries that she was required to keep.

Obviously, she wasn’t allowed to tell people to kill themselves, or tell someone to kill another person, or advise someone to do something illegal. Yet, she also set her own personal boundaries as to how far she allowed herself to go with callers.

Hence, she knew that she would never have advised anyone to attempt something obviously dangerous and life threatening.

“No, but-“ A proud smirk made its way across her features. The rest was easy.

“Then, it’s not my problem. Thank you for calling!” She pushed the button to end the call before the girl on the other end could respond. She almost let out a sigh of satisfaction right then. Dealing with pesky people always called for a song break.

She scrolled through the playlist she had already prepared for the day and was very pleased when she found exactly the song she was looking for. She was about to refer to the girl when she remembered that she hadn’t asked for her name. Soyeon shrugged. “Outrageous Best Friend” seemed fitting enough for her.

“Guys, hopefully this serves as a reminder that the answer should never be to push the blame for your actions to other people. We’re all adults here, yeah?”

Everglow’s new hit song. Of course.

It perfectly encompassed her feelings for the subject. She hoped that the rude girl would take the energy fuelling her anger and blame, and put it into her brain. Maybe she would finally realise that her friend acted of her own will and it had nothing to do with her. Good riddance to that.

Goodbye, Au Revoir, Adios.

~~~

“Hi DJ Jelly! So, I’ve got a problem.”

Instantly, Soyeon furrowed her brows. There was something about this voice that was very familiar. It sounded unusually squeaky and pinched, but she had a feeling the caller was someone she knew. As always, she plastered on a neutral but friendly voice.

“Hello, good afternoon. You’re on Idle Radio. What’s your name?”

“Cream Cheese.”

“What?” Soyeon said, before she remembered that she was on-air. It wasn’t the first time she had heard someone use a nickname, but it was strange enough for her to nearly bark out a laugh that would have been too genuine for her radio personality. She recovered before anyone could notice. “I missed that. Could you please say your name again?”

“Of course. Call me Chichu.” Of course, it was her.

She couldn’t hold back her eye roll this time. She reminded herself that she was still on-air. She was DJ Jelly now, not Jeon Soyeon. She would happily deal with the prankster senior as herself later on. For now, she would play along.

“Hi Jisoo. How may I help you today?”

“Well, you see...” Throughout the tale, Soyeon felt she was going to see the back of her skull with the amount of times she rolled her eyes. Still, she had to be patient. The senior would definitely get an earful from her later. She’d pull out all the stops and enlist Jennie‘s help too.

“But then she decided to stay out with a different guy this time, so my plan didn’t work.” The DJ decided to cut in right then and there, before the entire story got more convoluted and she lost track of time. Jisoo had a gift for telling stories. It was sometimes confusing, but always entertaining. Except for now, when Soyeon was extra sure that Jisoo was literally spinning this story out of nowhere. Anyone who’s spent time with her and her friends would have known that Jennie and Jisoo had been dating for years before they even became university roommates.

“So, you’re saying that you don’t want your roommate to bring so many one night stands over because it annoys you. And you don’t know how to tell her this because you don’t want to hurt her feelings?”

“...Yes, DJ Jelly. I’m not sure how to bring it up with her.”

Soyeon could swear Miyeon was laughing outside the soundproofed walls of the booth.

“Well Jisoo, I think the solution is simple. If you don’t want your roommate sleeping with other people, sleep with her instead.” She smirked. If Jisoo wanted to create such a fantastical tale, she was going to get a fantastical answer as well. She knew the senior well enough to know that her reply would have garnered a couple of laughs from her and probably Jennie as well.

She hung up the call and fired off a few replies to Miyeon who was telling her about a very cute junior that she met in her vocal class. Miyeon had been going on for weeks about how amazing her voice was, despite her lack of professional training. She couldn't believe that the girl was a freshman.

 

It had gotten to a point where Soyeon told her to just ask for her KakaoTalk if she was that interested in her. She was glad that her friend had finally taken her up on her advice, even if it had taken a couple of weeks. Apparently, Miyeon had finally worked up the nerve to start a conversation when the girl walked into class with her black hair dyed with uneven patches of blonde and a bandage around her wrist. It was hilarious even for Soyeon. She couldn't imagine how or why that even happened, but she was happy for her friend.

She had been scanning through Jisoo’s messages to her when the next call came in.

She had admittedly been distracted, so the rhetorical question that came after her normal greeting forced her to look up from her phone screen.

“How do you live with yourself?” Soyeon sighed. “Oh, it’s you again.”

She should have named her the ‘overzealous avenger’ or something, because some way or another, this irritating girl kept finding reasons to complain about her show. Soyeon was getting more fed up with her attitude. No one was forcing her to listen to her broadcast. If she hated her that much, she should just listen to a Spotify playlist instead of bothering her.

 

“To the caller just now, uhm, Jisoo, was it?”

Oh, heck no. What was this kid doing?

Soyeon respected everyone having the right to their opinions. However, she drew the line at disrespecting the boundaries of her broadcast and dismissing her when she was the host. This was her own show. The more the girl talked, the more irritated she got.

“Just be honest with your roommate. She has to be alone at some point. Try and explain what you’re feeling and maybe come up with a sched-“

She had enough. She had been more than patient with this rude caller. It wasn't the first time that she had called to criticise her. This person had absolutely no manners or respect. She really wanted to act as if she knew better, when she didn’t know the half of the situation. She didn't understand why she felt entitled to cut into someone else’s show.

“Excuse me, hasn’t anyone told you that it’s rude to hijack someone else’s broadcast?” Gritting her teeth, Soyeon tried to maintain her composure. She was already putting it as nicely as she could.

“Your voice is everywhere! It’s not like I have a choice when the entire campus broadcasts your dumb program as if it’s the bible!”

The radio host pursed her lips in slight surprise. She wasn’t expecting that answer. “Thank you for comparing me to God-“

“Please take your job seriously. That’s it.” The dial tone rung in her ears. That kid just hung up on her.

Was she really trying to have the last word? How childish. Who was she to ask her to take her job seriously when she clearly didn’t know anything about Idle Radio or DJ Jelly?

She clicked on ‘So What’, one of the songs on a playlist she created and named ‘Rawr’, because she couldn’t find another word to encompass her mood. Her mood had soured a bit after that.
 

She really hoped the rude girl wouldn’t call again.

~~~

Petty or not, the girl needed a hobby.

A couple of weeks passed before she realised it. Ever since the last time the outrageous best friend had called, Soyeon had been on her guard, anticipating when the girl might decide to disrupt her show again. She was probably letting the girl get to her a little too much, but it didn't hurt to be cautious. However, after some time of peace, she started to get curious. After all, as Sun Tzu wrote, when making an attack, one must seem inactive. She wouldn't fall for such a deception. Instead, she had to keep alert and figure out if she had any perceived blind spots.

The answer came in the form of Kwon Eunbin, surprisingly.

Eunbin was one of the few people outside the usual station crew that knew about her radio personality, and one of her closest friends. She had met the younger girl at a music camp during the summer, which she had begged her parents to let her sign up for. It was one of the deciding moments where she had to convince her parents that she wanted her profession to involve music.

Eunbin was a couple of years her junior, but they became very close due to shared interests and common goals.

 

Eunbin was enrolled in the same school that Soyeon was studying in as well, so she became somewhat of a mentor to the younger girl.

They had been close throughout the remainder of her high school years until she graduated and university life took up most of her time. They had kept in contact sporadically, but she hadn’t asked about career or university plans since she figured that Eunbin still had time to figure out what she wanted to do. She didn’t think that she would be seeing her close friend any time soon until she was caught off guard by a flurry of movement that barrelled into her on the way to class. She didn't even register the bump as their bodies hit the wall behind them.

“Surprise unnie!!!” She wasn’t someone who initiated physical contact, but Eunbin and her were close enough for her to welcome it.

“Eunbinie?” Soyeon turned to embrace the younger girl whose jacket nearly engulfed her. It had a been a while since they had met in person, although Eunbin looked almost exactly the same.

She had heard rumours that Jeon Somi had passed the early admission entrance exam, but it hadn’t crossed her mind that Eunbin would have joined at the same time. Somi had already developed a reputation by the time she finished high school, so she wasn’t surprised when she noticed her name in some of the clubs and societies. She knew that the two were close as well, so upon hindsight, she should have asked about Eunbin when she sent Somi a congratulatory message.

“I didn’t want to ruin the surprise by asking for your class schedule, but Somi told me that you usually pass by around this time. I’m glad I managed to run into you today. It looks like I’ll be in your care again, for the foreseeable future!”

Since then, they had made it a point to meet up whenever they had free time on the weekends, or study in the library when there were upcoming tests. Somi joined them at times, but it was mostly to distract them and convince them to get food instead of study.

While Soyeon enjoyed spending time with them, the girls often talked about things involving their cohort, so as a third year, she didn’t have much to contribute.

“Ah unnie, you know, there’s this freshman in my English class who’s been talking about you lately.” They were studying in a cafe this time, or rather, Eunbin was. Somi was more interested in scrolling through Instagram on her phone, and Soyeon was researching music compilations for one of her new projects.

“Me? Really?” Soyeon frowned. She didn’t normally mix with juniors; professionally and personally, so she didn’t see a reason for her name to be known amongst them.

Somi nodded. “Yeah. Well, not exactly you, per se, but your show and alias.”

“Oh.” Soyeon went silent as she sipped her iced coffee. She might have an idea of who that person was. Most students who followed her show would also know that her identity was one of the well hidden secrets in the school. Those who knew or worked with her personally would never reveal her identity. Her picture didn’t even exist on the school forum. She had always used cartoon renditions as posters or icons. That was just how it was.

“She’s been asking around for hints about your identity.” The brunette continued. “Is she your friend?”

Soyeon was slightly curious, but it wasn’t that surprising to hear that freshmen were familiar with her broadcast. She couldn’t say she was worried about either girl spilling her real identity. Even though her and Somi weren’t as close as her and Eunbin were, the two of them had developed a camaraderie over the years and mutual respect for one another.

“Eh, from our class? Who is it?” At Eunbin’s question, Somi turned to the other girl at the table.

“I don’t remember her first name, but I think her last name is Song.”

“That doesn’t sound like a typical Korean last name.” Soyeon finally spoke. It was her way of asking if the girl was a foreigner, which was definitely more indirect.

“Because it’s not.” Somi confirmed her indirect question bluntly. It would probably have been considered offensive if Somi wasn’t half Canadian and considered a foreigner herself.

Truthfully, Soyeon admired her candour and bravery, because Somi was someone who didn’t let other people’s mean comments bring her down.

She had witnessed a time when Somi wasn’t as popular or recognised as she was now. The people around her were less than supportive of her aspirations. Furthermore, she was often called “ugly” and ridiculed for not being a “real Korean”. It didn’t matter to other people that her mother was Korean. She wasn’t good enough for them. Somi had confessed to Soyeon once, that she wanted to do plastic surgery to look more Korean, because she had been so miserable. Yet, she continued to chase after what she wanted, and she eventually overcame the prejudice and bullying that were standing in her way.

At the time, it had been a point where they connected over shared grief over being ostracised for not fitting in. Now, they were protective and supportive of one another’s achievements.

“Oh! Her! I think I’ve seen her around on campus. She’s close with Minnie unnie right?” Eunbin chimed in excitedly.

“I‘m not sure... I don’t exactly spend a lot of time with them.” Somi turned her attention back to the senior. “But I am curious, why is she so interested in finding out who you are?”

Soyeon shrugged. “Another student trying their luck, I suppose. I don’t even know this person. You guys are the only freshmen I interact with.”

The other girl raised her eyebrows and hummed. There was a slight challenge in her gaze that made Soyeon wonder if she had already revealed too much about the situation. “Seems like it’ll be an interesting story to uncover then.”

“Maybe.” Soyeon responded non-commitedly. If this Song girl was who she thought she was, then she would bring it up with her the next time her broadcast got interrupted. If she was wrong, so be it. She wasn’t going to throw a random curious freshman under a Somi-driven bus before being sure of her identity.

“Ahh by the way, unnie, do you want cake?” Soyeon narrowed her eyes suspiciously. Somi’s face was unreadable. She had become a lot better at acting over the years, but Soyeon knew better.

“You’re just asking me because you want to eat cake and you want me to pay.”

“I will neither confirm nor deny that statement.” The mischievous girl batted her eyelids innocently. Soyeon rolled her eyes.

“Ooh! I want cake too! Studying makes me hungry.” Eunbin piped up, glancing between the two of them. Soyeon looked at Somi who was smirking as if she had already won the battle. In a way, Soyeon supposed she did. The two juniors reminded her of her own sister that she didn’t get to see often. As the senior, it was customary for her to treat them to lunch anyway.

“Alright, alright, go and order the cake you’ve been eyeing.”

The younger girls cheered in triumph as they rushed to the counter in tandem. It was amusing to see two full grown girls jumping and motioning to different cakes on display. If anyone were to look at their faces, they would think that they were having an intellectual debate, and not simply picking out cakes to share.

Meanwhile, back at the table, Soyeon took out her phone and typed out a message to Miyeon. The girls wouldn’t be back for a while, so she had to time to figure out something.

‘Unnie, the freshman in your vocal class, what did you say her name was?’

~~

If she remembered correctly, the topic had been about research papers when the call came in.

The familiar banter started with the caller accusing her of encouraging plagiarism. She had to defend herself, naturally. Now that she knew that the caller was actually a freshman, she was more amused by her antics than annoyed.

Her advice was textbook. It sounded like something a counsellor or teacher’s assistant would say. As someone who had gone through more years in college, she knew that it was not as simple as she made it out to be. Time management was key in surviving classes. University courses were specifically designed to pressure students into learning how to become efficient and force them out of their comfort zone. Picking their battles and prioritising certain assignments over others was important because certain professors gave higher weightage assessments that went towards their core requirements to graduate.

She didn’t know what year the student was in, but she had taken an Introduction to Psychology class in her first year. The expectations of the professors were very standard. The theories taught in class were not new, so people who spent more time writing thorough and detailed factual analyses were given higher grades. Hence, it was more important for her to go in depth into the merits and flaws of a theory as compared to writing broad based research paper on a theory taught in class, which the rude girl was suggesting.

“Then she shouldn’t be wasting more time listening to your terrible advice, Jelly.” “Oh wow, since when did we get so familiar with one another? I don’t even know your name.” Soyeon said in a teasing voice.

 

“I could say the same thing about you.” She was reminded of what Somi had mentioned in their meetup.

 

“Ah yes. How’s your search coming along? I heard that someone on campus has been asking around about me.“ There was an audible pause. She had been caught off guard. The DJ leaned away from the mic and inwardly squealed in glee. She definitely owed Somi a box of Mochi Mochi cream udons now.

Found you.

 

“You wish. I have better things to do with my time.”

Soyeon‘s smile grew at the forceful comment. Despite the tone, it was obvious that the girl’s statement was a blatant lie. Whoever this student was, she had been listening to her show, and paying enough attention to her advice such that she could call her just to criticise it. It seemed rather ironic for someone who carried so much negative emotions towards a simple radio show, to spend way more time and effort than necessary finding fault with it.

She believed that the first call was out of vengeance for her supposed best friend. Every other call since then, had been based on nothing but the intention to irritate her. Soyeon didn’t want to give her the satisfaction.

 

“... You seem to spend a lot of your time listening to my show, despite how much you claim to hate it.” She pointed out, leaving no room for argument. Soyeon looked at the string of messages from Miyeon who was eagerly texting her from outside the room.

Apparently, the fourth year thought that inviting the girl to the studio as a guest would increase their overall ratings. The DJ thought about it for a second. It wasn't completely a bad idea. She had to admit that the girl’s devotion to critiquing her show was fascinating. Furthermore, now that she was aware of her identity, it made the girl a lot less formidable. She could always bribe Somi and Eunbin with food for more information if she was desperate enough.  

 

“Anyway, if you’d like to criticise my advice in person, instead of hogging the phone lines, you can just pay a visit to the studio.”

~~~

Song Yuqi.

To say she had been surprised to see the freshman, in particular, standing in front of her would be an understatement. She had promptly proceeded to embarrass herself despite thinking she had the upper hand by asking her to visit the studio. At least, she could finally put a name to the face; and the voice, apparently. However, she hadn’t expected for the cute freshman who had been haunting her mind and the overzealous and rude best friend to end up being the same person.

What were the odds of this happening?

Miyeon and Chaeyoung were discussing some class assignment they had, so she had sat outside to give them some privacy. She was in the middle of rearranging a song that had been requested by some of the listeners, so as always, she wasn’t really paying attention to her surroundings.

Yes, she had extended the invitation to the rude best friend, but it was more of a dare than an actual challenge. She didn’t think too much of it afterwards. The people who left her hateful comments were not usually people who would dare to deliver their comments face to face. Hence, the last thing she expected was for the rude caller to turn out to be the same girl who repeatedly went to the wrong classroom. Also known as the really pretty freshman who had left an impression on her.

She had jumped when she realised that she wasn’t alone. The girl had taken a small step back at her reaction. Upon reflection, their whole interaction was rather embarrassing to recall. She had to be thankful that the girl didn’t seem to remember her.

They had interacted once, and she had never spoken to her directly. Hence, she didn’t expect for the girl to remember her, or her voice, for that matter. It helped that the voice she used on the radio was more distinct and sharp as compared to her normal voice.  

Miyeon was going to have so much fun with this, she just knew it. It would be over for her once Chaeyoung found out. They wouldn’t let her live it down.

It didn’t take long for her prophecy to come true.

“You did say you wanted to see her again, didn’t you?” Miyeon said, mirth in her eyes.

“I didn’t think she’d really show up suddenly.” Soyeon admitted.

“Oh my gosh!! Is that her?” The squeal from Chaeyoung was high pitched enough for Soyeon to worry that Yuqi had heard it from outside the room. It wasn't exactly soundproof.

She nodded and was about to tell them her name when Chaeyoung got up from the table and went to greet her before she could even open . Soyeon should have expected no less from the friendly girl.

She turned back to Miyeon who was grinning way too widely for her comfort.

“I won the bet, by the way. You know what that means right?”

“I’m not going to play classical music during my show.” Soyeon interjected.

As much as she loved her unnie, she would rather do a collaboration with her, and show off her talents with the violin, instead of play a classical music symphony which most music students majoring in classical music would have grown sick and tired of.

A while ago, Soyeon had offered to write a collaborative piece that incorporated both Miyeon’s violin and vocal skills. However, the senior had decidedly turned her down. She said she wasn’t ready for that kind of exposure, and Soyeon had respected that decision.

 

It didn’t stop her from trying from time to time though. Miyeon had declared her classical major early because of her background in piano and violin. It was only after she had been asked to sing as an accompaniment when she discovered her love for singing. However, people in her course specialisation looked down on students who ventured into pop and contemporary music, calling it “uncultured”.

“I wasn’t going to ask you to.” Soyeon gave her a disbelieving stare.

“I mean it! I wasn’t going to ask you to play classical music. You’ve already rejected my suggestion so many times.” The older brunette pouted dejectedly.

“Ugh, don’t do aegyo, unnie.” The DJ groaned. Her animated pout disappeared within a second, turning into a cheeky smirk.

“Bet you’d be fine with it if she did it.”

Soyeon looked down to hide her blush. “Anyway, speaking of bets, what do you want?”

The senior pretended to give it some thought. “Put Super Junior onto your daily playlist for a week.”

“What?!” Soyeon exclaimed. “How long have you been an ELF?”

The senior’s hesitation gave her a hint. She narrowed her eyes.

“It’s not you, who wants to hear Super Junior songs, is it?” Soyeon glared accusatorily.

“Um, I should go and introduce myself.” Miyeon let out a nervous laugh as she excused herself. She watched the older girl all but run out of the room, all too eager to be in the safety of their guest’s presence.

The DJ waited for a while before going outside. The other two were asking about her interests and course breakdown and Soyeon shot them a warning stare. Chaeyoung and Miyeon retreated to the room, presumably to continue working on their assignment, although Soyeon knew that the assignment was probably the last thing on their minds now that they had something new to about.

She could guess where they were heading with their inquiries. It was no secret that they needed a few juniors to take over the station after they graduated. However, Soyeon didn’t necessarily want to accept just any freshman who decided to walk in. She needed people she could trust; people who were as committed as her when it came to the managing of the radio station.

She sat on the other end of the couch where the girl was sitting, ensuring that there was enough space between them before she spoke.

“Please excuse me, I forgot to introduce myself just now. I’m Jeon Soyeon, third year music major.”

 

“Song Yuqi. Freshman. Majoring in trying to pass my classes so I can take my language specialisations next year.” The senior chuckled at that. So, despite her animosity, the rude girl did have a sense of humour after all.

“I see. Would you like us to refer to you as Yuqi on-air or do you have a preferred name you’d like to be known as?”

 

“Uh, just Yuqi is fine. I don’t think I’ll be staying for the full broadcast anyway.” Soyeon noticed the girl’s slightly nervous glances around the studio. She briefly wondered what was going through her mind at that moment.

Was she looking for someone?

 

“Oh. Why not?” She asked, trying to keep the conversation going. There was something about the timbre of Yuqi’s voice that she liked. She wanted to hear it again.

“I don’t think I’m suited for this kind of stuff. I don’t really know how to engage listeners and all...”

The younger girl trailed off until Soyeon could barely make out the words she was saying. However, she didn’t try to push her for more. Yuqi seemed embarrassed. It was a far cry from the aggressive and loud voice she had grown accustomed to hearing on the phone. In a way, it was also ironic for her to think that way, because the disparity between her radio personality and her was arguably similar.

“... Besides, all I did was argue with DJ Jelly a couple of times. I don’t think that’s very entertaining.”

She really begged to differ. This freshman probably didn’t venture onto campus forums or public platforms because she would have seen the amount of people trying to figure out who this mysterious rude caller was. She was immensely popular.

 

“You might be surprised at how you can affect others.” It was a cryptic statement, admittedly, but she didn’t exactly want to reveal herself so soon. She didn’t want her guest to run out of the studio before actually listening to her show.

Their conversation was interrupted by Miyeon. To which, Soyeon was thankful. Part of her was excited to do the broadcast with a guest in the hall, while the other part was concerned about what Yuqi would think of her after she realised the truth. She had guests on the show, but having someone like Yuqi in the studio felt different. Either way, it was too late to do anything.

She turned to the window by chance, and caught a glimpse of the girl’s mortified expression. She was certain the other girl was yelling, and her words were probably not suited for the broadcast. It was a good thing the booth was soundproof. She pitied Miyeon who had to suffer outside. Holding in her laughter was a big struggle but she managed it until she turned her back to the door.

This was going to be fun.

~~~

She finally relaxed when the freshman left the radio station. Soyeon was surprised that she had decided to stay for the entire show, since the freshman had been rather unwilling to participate in the beginning. She didn’t want to say anything in front of their guest, but it was refreshing to have someone bounce off her ideas and banter with her. As DJ Jelly, being borderline ridiculous and having a sardonic sense of humour was pretty much in the job description. No one had taken any offense to her comments and it was an unspoken consensus that everything was for the sake of entertainment.

Song Yuqi was definitely one of a kind. The fact that she could make the same mistake four times within the first semester of school was already incredible. If anyone wanted to display a unique individual, she would have already fit the bill before she even dialled the station’s number and yelled at her.

“How is our dear Soyeonie?” Miyeon pranced into the room with an enchanting smile. “Did you enjoy your little blind date?”

“What?” Soyeon asked incredulously. She was bent over her computer and setting up the queue for rest of the evening. Chaeyoung had left hours ago, so it was just her and Miyeon to close up the station.

Her arms were full of cables, but she didn’t want to lose her train of thought so she balanced them in her arms as she programmed the queued songs to play for the next few hours. Noticing the shift of her body weight, the older girl took a few cords from her arms to lessen her burden.

“That definitely wasn’t a blind date.”

“I mean, before today, you two didn’t interact in person. You definitely liked her, and she stayed the entire time despite how much you said she hates DJ Jelly. I think it’s clear that she likes you too.” Miyeon placed the wires back in the storage box at the corner of the room before she poked the DJ’s side. “Sounds like a blind date to me.”

“You’re being ridiculous, unnie. There’s nothing going on between us.” Soyeon admonished lightly, but she blushed all the same. It was a reflex.

“Yet.” Miyeon added. “By the way, I didn’t hear any of the songs I selected on your playlist today.”

“They’re being queued for later.” She said, gesturing to the computer screen. The older girl scurried past her to look through the choices and frowned.

“You didn’t pick any of the songs I selected.” Miyeon extended her bottom lip in a pout that would probably make the entire student population fall to the ground. However, Soyeon just raised one eyebrow quizzically.

“Your request was to play Super Junior songs, not specifically the ones you picked.”

“‘Sorry Sorry’ is a classic!” The other brunette exclaimed.

“Well, I think ‘Thirst’ is more appropriate for your state of mind right now. ‘y, Free and Single’ too.”

Miyeon gasped in her gloriously exaggerated fashion and protested. “But I’m not!!”

“Oh? Which of those words are you referring to?” Soyeon smirked as the senior blanched, realising her mistake.

She could see her friend attempting to backtrack but it was too late. Soyeon had the benefit of knowing more than necessary about their relationship. Over the course of their friendship, she had garnered a lot of ammunition to poke fun at the senior, who returned fire just as freely. Yet, teasing Miyeon was always amusing because she had adorable reactions when she couldn't come up with a good enough comeback. After a few seconds of silence, Soyeon was certain that her unnie’s brain had malfunctioned so she caved and place her hand on her shoulder.

“Tell your girlfriend to tune in around 2pm tomorrow and I’ll play ‘Bonamana’ and ‘Mr Simple’.”

She wasn’t surprised in the least to hear the older girl’s excited squeal before she was tackled in a side hug. She had gotten used to the force that the senior used when it came to hugs, so she just accepted the gesture of affection.

“Thank you!! You’re the best Soyeonie!” Miyeon ran out of the room, presumably to inform her said girlfriend. Soyeon shook her head. She knew without a doubt that they weren’t official yet but Miyeon didn’t even try to deny her relationship status. Having that much relationship security was a good thing.

“Who’s the whipped one now, unnie?” She called out.

“It’s still you!” Came Miyeon’s answer, without the slightest hesitation.

 

Getting ready to leave, the DJ slung her backpack over her shoulders and set a reminder for herself to add ‘No Other’ and ‘Marry U’ to the playlist, just for kicks. With the rate they were going, she had no doubt that she would be asked to make a relationship playlist for them soon.

~~

She honestly wasn’t expecting the other girl to show up again, much less within 48 hours. Then again, Song Yuqi hardly ever did anything she anticipated.

Her segment was due to start in the late afternoon so she had arrived early to set up and complete some of her assignments. While DJ Jelly would advise other students to find ways and means around the rules, Jeon Soyeon was someone who didn’t take shortcuts; especially when it came to her own productions. It wasn’t hell week yet, but she had a couple of big assessments coming up. There was no harm and instead, great merit in starting early.

As a music writing and composition student, she was put under constant pressure to innovate and write songs. In the first few semesters, she struggled to find a way to balance out her genuine interest as well as her academics. Composing melodies and writing lyrics was fun when it was taken as leisure, but when her grades were riding on it, she found that it was challenging to maintain her love and passion for music. As a third year, she realised that music shouldn’t be divided into ‘work’ and ‘play’, but rather, ‘work’ should always be ‘play’. As soon as she got rid of the distinction, she realised that inspiration appeared in bits and pieces and in different forms. It was just a matter of connecting them into ideas and concepts to build pieces on.

 

Usually, once she found a theme or overarching philosophy, all the elements would start coming together. Hence, whenever she had a deadline, she would spend time wandering along the Yangjaecheon river near to her home in search of inspiration.

It had been a habit of hers since middle school. Whenever she experienced stress or needed to calm down, she would go for a walk and she found herself drawn to the ever flowing stream of water. It was constant, unbending and powerful. It gave her peace of mind and solace, especially during the period when she was struggling to find her own direction.

That was the place where she came up with the starting chords for her final music project in her freshman year of university. It underwent numerous revisions but at the end, the final product gave her a high enough grade to gain the professor’s recommendation and recognition to secure a future internship at a reputable music production company.

Since then, she had made that river her special place.

During her most recent venture, she had chanced upon a graffiti ridden wall under one of the many bridges along the banks. The paint had faded over time and countless artists had used the canvass many times over. The chaos wasn’t the first thing that caught her attention though. Instead, it was the scattered petals of what looked like an Azalea flower that remained in her mind even after she reached home.

She wasn’t sure how long she stood in the shadows under that bridge, listening to the water and the solitary footsteps of people walking on the bridge above her.

She pictured a person, fresh from a breakup, walking along the river at night, contemplating their relationship and how it had run its course. The only thing breaking the pensive silence being the sound of the water, wind, and their lonely footsteps that got more resolute as they reached the mouth of the river. Before she knew it, she was at home, digging up her old notes on Korean poetry and paying homage to Kim Sowol’s works.

She wanted to capture something, an emotion, that couldn’t be explained using words. It was angry, resigned, lonely, hollow, and betrayed. Yet, it also burned with the desire and will to move on, alone.

The crackling of the intercom disrupted her concentration. Glaring at the speaker, Soyeon hurriedly wrote down a few more notes and pointers before the entire melody slipped from her mind.

She had locked the room on purpose. Miyeon knew better than to disturb her when she had an assignment. She had been checking the clock from time to time, so she knew that while it was nearing her broadcast schedule, there was still a couple of minutes before she had to get ready. She was ready to say something when Miyeon spoke.

“Soyeon-ah, your guest is here.”

She spun around to see the stunned and rather sheepish freshman, and she really couldn’t be angry anymore.

~~~

Song Yuqi really wasn’t as discreet as she made herself out to be. She had lost count of the number of times the freshman had looked over at her in the course of the past half an hour. She had asked her to lead some of the calls, hoping that it would give her some peace of mind, or at least distract her from constantly staring.

Miyeon had informed her about the younger girl’s project so she figured that giving her more opportunities wouldn’t harm her report.

Again; Soyeon could feel the other girl’s eyes on her. As much as a person’s gaze didn’t have physical impact on another’s skin, it was normal for humans to gain a sense when they were being watched. She figured it was instinctive, a form of evolutionary instinct for prey to gain a form of awareness when they were being hunted.

She only heard the tail end of the girl’s story but she was ready with a snarky comment at the tip of her tongue.

“Tell her to go for couple’s therapy. They obviously need it.”

“JEO-JELLY!” Soyeon definitely heard the slip. Yuqi wasn’t good at concealing her feelings, or mistakes. She had a very straightforward way of behaving, and despite it backfiring a couple of times, Soyeon felt that it was a strength and not a weakness.  

 

However, she noticed how the freshman’s eyes widened. Yuqi looked absolute petrified at the thought that she might have revealed her secret, so she decided to do her a favour and pretend it didn’t happen.

 

“Was I wrong?”

 

“That’s not the issue here.” Soyeon wanted to roll her eyes. This phone call was already stretching the limits. She usually allocated a certain amount of time for each caller, depending on the situation. If it was her taking the lead, she would have thrown out a couple of sarcastic comments and moved on. However, since it was Yuqi’s call, she was stuck with the would-be counsellor. Every call seemed to drag even longer than the previous one. At this rate, Yuqi should just have her own segment. Soyeon made a mental note to call that segment “I-Talk” because the freshman really talked too much.

“Maybe you can ask her to talk to her boyfriend about her feelings instead of asking you to delete your own photographs.”

 

“Or,” She had listened to this long enough. If she had not interjected, Yuqi would have probably launched into a deep conversation about feelings and sorting out their differences. A quick glance to her phone would have told her how many callers were tentatively in queue. Miyeon had been graciously patient with the newcomer today, but Soyeon wasn’t about to let her spend all her time on one call. They did have a schedule to follow.

“Maybe a better solution would just be to tell the girl to dump her boyfriend. Why be in a relationship with someone they can’t trust?”

“Have you never been in a relationship?” The younger girl seemed unusually uptight. Soyeon noticed the slight edge to her question and bristled.

 

“Of course I have.” She scoffed. What an insult.

 

She was a third year student in university. Of course, she would have at least been in a couple of relationships in her lifetime. Although she hadn’t particularly enjoyed them, the insinuation hurt.

She had no illusions about herself. She knew all too well that she wasn’t pretty. Her first crush had told her so, frankly. She had repeated it until she had grown numb to people who used it as an insult. Her features weren’t up to society’s standard of beauty, she was a socially awkward perfectionist that didn’t know how to express herself very well, and her normal speaking voice wasn’t attractive. With all that, being unattractive wasn’t something she could deny. Still, it was a bit insulting for the junior to judge her on such a superficial level.

More so, because after hearing Yuqi’s advice on finding inner strength and confidence during their previous session, she thought the other girl would have delved deeper into the fundamental elements of a relationship. It didn’t help that she was naturally stunning when she smiled, and her eye smiles could probably melt even the coldest person’s heart. However, the moment she opened , she became the most annoying person in the room because she still spoke like someone who had no life or dating experience outside from movies and books. Then, something occurred to her. She turned to the girl beside her.

“Have you?”

 

“No, but it doesn’t make me wrong.” Yuqi folded her arms across her chest. They were heading into sensitive territory.

 

“Maybe. But it does make you less knowledgeable.” She said carefully. It was difficult to argue against a fact like that. She could see Yuqi switch gears once she made that comment. The younger girl turned back into her more radio friendly self.

 

“Then what would you have done if you were in her position?”

 

“I’d create a number of posts with advice aimed at couples and links to couple therapy and then tag both of them. Sooner or later, at least one of them will get the message.”

Yuqi looked exasperated. “Why did I bother asking...”

Hearing the caller’s voice again reminded her why she had even wanted to cut in. She wondered how long this call alone had lasted for. Thankfully, the girl ended the call soon after that and Soyeon was free to send out a message to thank Miyeon for holding the fort. Miyeon simply sent her a Super Junior sticker on KakaoTalk, which almost made her laugh. She had already queued ‘Fever’ as the next song, so her dear senior would have to wait.

She had changed browser windows to check on the social media pages when she heard Yuqi’s voice from beside her.

“I can’t believe you told someone to dump their boyfriend.”

 

“I can’t believe you didn’t.” Soyeon responded nonchalantly.

She didn’t really feel like starting a quarrel with her at the moment. She was already dangerously close to letting a comment affect her mood, despite her promise to herself, when she first became DJ Jelly, that she wouldn’t. Granted, it had been made by Yuqi and not just any anonymous user on the internet, but she refused to consider that as the sole reason why she had been upset. She tried to maintain the balance between seriousness and light-hearted humour in her reply but she didn’t succeed entirely.

 

“I couldn’t believe; until you said that you’ve never been in a relationship.”

There was a flash of something in Yuqi’s eyes, before it shifted to hurt. Soyeon hadn’t realised the magnitude of the situation since she had been caught up with her own emotions at the time, but it was obviously a sore spot for her too.

The younger brunette sighed and it seemed like it took a great deal of effort for her to continue speaking.

“It’s not like I’ve never dated or had crushes. I’ve done that; I’ve tried. I can’t do something and invest in someone if it’s going to be short lived. I just... I guess I don’t really want to get into a relationship with someone unless I really find someone who’s a good match for me.”

 

Soyeon felt rather ashamed for calling the younger girl out in that manner. She hadn’t intended to hurt the girl with her statement. However, on hindsight, she should have anticipated that there would be more to Yuqi’s seemingly idealistic perspective than it appeared.

Yuqi’s point of view was perfectly reasonable, and quite unlike the naive and rose tinted notion that she had pictured in her head. Apologising wouldn’t help the situation. It wasn't as easy as deleting or removing a comment posted on the internet. She couldn't turn back time and un-say her words so the least she could do was not make things any worse.

 

Yuqi was sitting less than two meters away from her but her mind was miles away. She didn’t know what possessed her to reach out but Yuqi jerked when her hand came into contact with her arm. She didn’t seem uncomfortable though, just surprised, and that ultimately was what encouraged her to go on instead of moving away immediately.

“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that mindset.” Yuqi met her gaze when she said that. It felt as though she was searching for any signs that Soyeon was lying. She wasn’t. Soyeon felt the unspoken insecurity and panic that the other girl had, and she tried to reassure her as much as she could.

Relationships weren’t the defining factor of a person’s worth. Neither was it something that was necessary in order to survive. She wasn’t sure what the other girl had experienced to make her so ashamed of her own ideals, but Soyeon was resolved to at least show her that she didn’t think less of her for it. As much as DJ Jelly would have used it to make a snide comment as a prank, Soyeon drew a line between her persona and her genuine response. Besides, Yuqi wasn’t that bad.

“Sometimes it’s the trying and failing that helps you figure out what you really want in a relationship. Cheer up, Yuqi-ah. University is a big place, and you’ve got the rest of your life after school to find someone who can be a good match for the long run. You’ve still got a couple of years to figure it out. Who knows? Maybe you’ll find a good match when you least expect it.”

When she looked in the other girl’s direction, there was a faint smile on her face and she grinned in relief.
Given how inaccurate her initial assumption was, she wasn’t sure how helpful her advice would be to the other girl. Yet, at the very least, she had gotten Yuqi to smile again, and that was good enough for her.

There was a saying about that, Soyeon recalled.

Keep smiling because you never know who’s falling in love with your smile.

It was a terrible and inaccurate statement. She disliked whoever came up with it. If a person only fell in love with another person when they smiled, then they wouldn’t comprehend the feeling of sharing another person’s sorrow and turning it into happiness. Truly loving someone was loving them no matter what emotion they were going through.

Soyeon looked at the pensive girl next to her and decided to throw her a distraction. Scribbling rapidly on the song schedule which she had printed for her own reference, she slid the paper across the invisible barrier between them. She watched as Yuqi’s eyes scanned the note and shot to her in shock when she understood the message. Of course, she had come prepared. If Yuqi wasn’t able to come up with something in time, she already had a description of the song and script ready for her to refer to. She wouldn’t throw the girl into the deep end without actually having a life jacket and rescue boat on standby, ready to save her if things went awry.

She watched Yuqi’s eyes widen and how she spam typed on her phone, even though she could have asked her for the lyrics or borrowed her laptop.

When her time was almost up, Yuqi looked away from her notes and her shoulders slumped. Soyeon was ready to hand her the script to read from when she noticed a certain steel in her eyes. Her gaze was determined and committed; and Soyeon felt just a bit proud of her.

 

Okay, more than a bit.

“The next song is a passionate perspective on romance. It’s, uh, it describes meeting someone whose gaze is so...magnetic that you can’t bear to look away from.” The freshman took a second to pause and swallow her nerves, which Soyeon noticed. She wanted to encourage her but Yuqi was deliberately avoiding her gaze so she figured that she shouldn’t let her intentions be misconstrued as giving her extra pressure.

“And even if you escape, you always come back to them, every time. Like destiny. So, um, here’s Lovelyz with their hit single, ‘Destiny’.”

She watched her co-host exhale and put a hand to her chest, as if she had experienced a terrifying trial and couldn’t believe she had made it out alive. She couldn’t hide the smile on her face fast enough.

There was this moment, where she saw Yuqi go from the confident speaker to a nervous girl who had spent so much energy in making sure she succeeded, that she felt an immense amount of relief when she finally made it. Her confidence deflated and she became Song Yuqi, a freshman who was genuinely trying her best. She was reminded of the Yuqi who sat down next to her, completely oblivious to the fact that she was in the wrong class. Soyeon found that she rather liked this Yuqi’s company.

Yuqi did a weird victory dance, which made her look like she was about to fall out of her chair with the amount of vigour she was shaking with. Soyeon didn’t want to ruin her moment, not when Yuqi was probably still upset that she threw her such an unexpected challenge. So, she pretended to be absorbed in sifting through her inbox.

Thankfully, she had received a message from Miyeon, asking her about another song to add to her list. At least she had something to direct her attention towards. She hoped that Yuqi would interpret the smile on her face as a response to what she was reading, and not because she was watching her. It was getting more difficult to control her facial expressions when she was around Yuqi, which made the freshman a dangerous person to interact with. She didn't like feeling so exposed.

It wasn’t her fault that the freshman was ridiculously cute when she wasn't being irritating.

~~