I panicked when the intercom began ringing. "Answer it!" Baekhyun said from his seat. I could tell even he was freaking out.

What if it was Eomma? Someone must have seen me with them and notified her, and now she has come to chop off my head.

I pressed the answer button hesitantly, and the small screen flashed open. In the hallway, a man dressed in delivery clothes stood holding a large box. "Excuse me, is this Ms Kang Sohee? I have your order," said the man.

"Yes, this is she. I'll be right there, "I said as I took a step away from the speaker. I breathed a sigh of relief. "False alarm. It's just food delivery," I informed them. "Who ordered it and then forgot?" I questioned. Baekhyun shook his head. "Don't look at me," Kai said with a wave of his hands.

That's strange, I thought.

Grabbing my cardigan and wrapping it around me, I took my wallet and opened the door. "Here's your order of fried chicken," the delivery man said, tipping his hat up.

"How much is it?" I asked, preparing to pull out the bills. "It has already been paid for. I hope you enjoy your meal, ma'am, " he stated, holding it out in front of me. Thanking him, I took it, and he quickly vanished.

I shrug my shoulder as I close the door behind me. "Is that chicken I smell?" Kai inquired, his eyes gleaming with hope. "Great sense!" I exclaimed, astonished by his ability to guess. "Do you know what that means?" Kai mused, suggestively. "Chimaek!" we both yelled simultaneously, excited by the thought of munching on the crunchy, tender chicken.

I would have stuffed myself with chicken if Baekhyun hadn't cleared his throat. "I guess we'll end our little practice here, Ms Sohee, or should I say Jagi."

His sudden endearment made me blush. Before Baekhyun could even stand, Kai invited him to join us for dinner. "I appreciate the offer, but I need to get ready for work tomorrow. So, hopefully, I'll see you both around," he said as he stood up and straightened his clothes. "Well, tonight was very productive. I hope you don't forget about next Saturday." I grinned sheepishly as I handed the box to Kai.

I went to see my neighbour out when he suddenly drew me along with him and closed the door behind us. He took a quick glance around before leaning in closer to me. Leaving us only centimetres apart. Shocked by the sudden proximity, he spoke in hushed manner, "I didn't want to say it with him around, but I was thinking about paying you a visit every evening for practice, however that would be inappropriate of me. Instead, why don't we call each other on a regular basis? That way, you'd be able to practice without feeling awkward."

I frowned. "You had to pull me for that?"

"Were you by any chance expecting something?"

"Over my dead body."

"Thought so. This was why I chose you. Now about my proposal, what do you think?"

"Sounds really convenient, I like it. So do you have Ka-talk, Mr Baekhyun?"

"Ka-talk?"

"Don't tell me you don't know Kakaotalk."

"Unlike your poor memory, I know what it is."

I raised an eyebrow at him.

"It's..." he paused, breaking out in a cold sweat. "Just type your number," he said as he handed me his phone. "And Kai said I was behind," I giggled, taking it.

After typing it, I was stuck with naming myself. "Um... How should I name myself?"

"Jagi."

"You can't be serious."

"Add a heart while your on it."

"You sure have a lot of dating experience," I said, typing down like he told me and handed it back.

"I've had my fair share," he boasted.

"You better not cheat on me," I warned him.

"You betcha," he smirked, making me laugh.

When he got inside his apartment, I shut my door and found Kai already eating.

"Took you long enough. I was too hungry and started without you."

I let out a chuckle and sat across from him on the floor. I cracked open a can of beer and took a large swig to drown out my exhaustion from the day. I smacked my lips in delight, "Ah! That hit the spot."

"You sound like an old man."

"and you are this old man's mom," I retorted, laughing. He shook his head, "You're weird."

"Tell me something I don't know."

The rest of the evening was spent with me downing one too many beer cans as Kai savoured his fried chicken. When it came to eating chicken, he wasn't much of a drinker. On the other hand, I enjoy consuming alcohol to relieve stress.

The following morning, I woke up with a throbbing headache. A bottle of red ginseng and a small note stood on the side table.

Hang-in-there is in the fridge.

Kai x

I grinned at the thoughtful gesture. It's been almost five years, yet I'm still surprised he able to remember my go-to hangover remedies. I tried to recall if I did anything stupid the night before in order for him to buy them. Except for the fact that he helped me in getting to bed, nothing else came to mind.

To begin my very bright and blinding Tuesday, I cautiously rose up and made my way to the bathroom. After managing to wash off last night's stench, I got dressed and heard my phone go off.

'Good morning Jagiya!'

I frowned at the unknown message as I took a sip from the glass bottle. It took me a minute to realize who the sender was.

Unconsciously, I sent him a 'Good morning Dr Baekhyun!' text until it dawned on me. In a panic, I tried to delete it, but noticed the message was read. Soon I got a reply.

'Are you kidding me? -_-'

I face-palmed myself at my reckless mistake.

'I'm sorry, Oppa. Please forgive me?ㅠ~ㅠ'

I cringed at my own text.

'All is forgiven if I can get a cute voicenote from my beautiful Jagi ;) '

'No, thanks. I'll pass.'

'Don't be such a joykiller, Jagiya.'

'-_-'

'I'm waiting...'

I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs for agreeing to do something so ridiculous. Why did I give out my phone number so easily? I let out a sigh. Scratching the back of my head in annoyance, I raked my brain for a cute response, but I was coming up empty.

'Suggest something to me.'

'...​​' 

'I'm serious, I have nothing.'

'How about Oppa is the only person I love in the entire world?'

'Forget it. I'll send you whatever comes to mind.'

And I did send whatever popped into my head. Even though it was embarrassing, I sent it. In return, I was left on seen with no reply. I groaned and tossed my phone aside. With the grumbling of my tummy, I stood up and went to cook something for myself.

Back when I was in university and had to attend courses and complete assignments and projects, I would normally dread the weekdays. Especially when it came to Ms. Xiao's Tuesday Child Psychology classes. But now that I've graduated and secured a well-paying part-time job as a weekend tutor, I'm in a better position. I've grown to appreciate them.

I sighed as I dropped myself on the couch after finishing my meal. I had nothing planned for myself except to watching tv. Who'd have guessed it'd be so dull?

As I buried my head in the throw pillow, I was immediately reminded of my hasty purchase from the night before. I got back up and looked around for the bag, which was tucked away in a corner.

Digging through the contents of bag, I pulled out the brown paper bag and noticed the jacket that was lended to me.

I should bring that to the laundromat tomorrow, I thought to myself and placed the bag on the table.

Tossing the paper bag aside, I checked out the cover of the book. There wasn't much to it other than a guy's handsome face. If this was him I bet his fangirls would've have gone gaga over it. It read 'Standing at 24' by Lay Zhang. And I soon began to spend the whole day reading it. Occasionally, I would take a break from reading and get something to eat or use the restroom.

I was so absorbed in the autobiography that it was practically nighttime when I completed it. Part of me was touched by his generosity and admiration, while another respected his determination and commitment. If I met him, I'm sure I'd thank him for his hard work and request him to take a break now and again. He was such a busybody throughout the book. He didn't know when to quit, but that's what shaped him into the person he is now. He was able to pass that milestone and achieve the state of independence with the help of his adoring and supporting fans.

Setting the book on the table, I took out the envelope with the golden ticket. The time and location of the signing were indicated on the ticket.

How lucky am I?

I tucked the envelope inside the book and went to bed, where I soon fell asleep.

When the next day arrived, I made it a priority to take the jacket to the laundromat. I readied myself and went in search of a cleaner. It's just been three months, and I'm still clueless of my surroundings. After not coming home for almost five years, many things changed. I reminded myself to go exploring more often.

I recall seeing one somewhere in the neighbourhood, but I couldn't pinpoint it. I looked for one on my phone, but every option was either too far away or too pricey. Dr. Byun didn't even bother texting me back, which made me wonder if the voicenote I sent was inappropriate.

I kept wandering till I came across a small joint. I walked into the store without a second thought and placed the bag on the counter.

"Hello and welcome to Luck-O-Laundry. Where we help in making dirty clothes turn clean and fresh. We not only do washing, but also pressing, dry cleaning, and- Yah! Kang Sohee, is that you?"

Confused by the greeting, I looked up to see someone whom I least expected. "Oh Sehun?" he smiled.

"Fancy seeing you here. How long has it been?"

"A long time. How are you?"

"I'm good. What brought you back to this old town?"

"You know what they say, no matter how far you are, you'll always come back home. So, here I am," I grinned.

Just then the store's bell rang and Sehun excused himself to tend to the customer.

"Ah! Dr. Baek, good morning! Are you on leave today?" My eyes widened at the mention of the name. I shook my head. It had to be someone else.

"Yeah and I'm here to have this ready by Saturday," said the familiar voice. I turned my head slightly and saw it was indeed him. To avoid him, I tugged the brim of my cap down and faced the other direction.

"A suit? How rare. Will you be proposing to your secret girlfriend?"

"Where'd you hear that nonsense?"

"My wife is part of the silly town's association. She told me that you were gonna introduce your girlfriend to the whole town and propose. Is it true?"

I was utterly beyond shocked at this point and judging by the looks of it, even he was.

How far did Eomma spread this baseless rumour? But, I'm glad she didn't expose us to the public eye just yet.

Baekhyun cleared his throat "Now, now. Don't fall for such nonsense. Even if she is my girlfriend, I would not go so far as to propose to her. In fact, I was forced to date her."

I snapped at what he said. He was forced into dating me? Me?!

"I'm sorry about that."

"That's perfectly fine. You know how crazy women get these days when they see a successful bachelor such as myself," he boasted.

I scoffed.

Sehun laughed, "You're right. Woman do go crazy when they grow older. I can't imagine how far she has gone only to date you. Why don't you report her?"

"It would be silly of me to file a case against a petty obsession when she will eventually lose interest."

"She's lucky you're such a nice guy."

Unable to stand it anymore, I turned my heel and grabbed the blonde's arm. "Oppa! I didn't see you there."

Baekhyun frowned. I smiled at him.

"It's your forced-to-date girlfriend. Did you already forget about me?" I said in a sickly sweet tone as I stepped on his foot.

"Of course not. How could I have forgotten about my beautiful Jagi? "He forced a smile and patted me on the head.

"Heol! Kang Sohee is your girlfriend? Daebakk!" Sehun snickered.

I cocked my eyebrow at him. "What's so funny?"

"Back in high school, you were known as the Ice Queen. You'd never date a guy as friendly as Dr. Baek right here."

"What?!"

"Dr Baek, I would advise you to actually file a complain. She is a real psycho."

"Oh Sehun... Do you want to die?" I bellowed, raising a clenched fist.

"And judging by the way you are dressed, I bet you must have been stalking the poor doctor," Sehun tsked, folding his arms. 

"Yah!" 

"Just kidding," he laughed as he raised his hands in defense. "Does Kim Kai know?"

"What on earth does this have to do with him?"

"I'm curious, does he know?"

"Of course, he does."

"Was it that handsome looking fellow?" Baekhyun enquired.

"Yah! They met?!" Sehun inquired, surprised.

"Shouldn't they?"

"No, it's a good thing they met," Sehun sighed.

"Mr Sehun, I wish you can keep this a secret from the missus till the official day," Baekhyun requested.

"My lips are sealed."

"And um... could I have this ready by Saturday?" the blonde questioned.

"Ah, yes. I can have it done by Friday if you like."

"Perfect!"

"How about mine?"

"When do you want yours?"

I considered giving it to Eric's Uncle on Sunday, but I doubt Myunji Eonnie would leave me alone.

"By Friday morning?"

"I'll have both finished by Friday morning. Is that okay with you, Dr. Baek?"

"It's not with me," I chimed.

"What's the harm? I don't see an issue with handing them to either of you since you're dating," Sehun stated.

Baekhyun and I exchanged glances.

"We don't-"

"I'll pick it up for you as well, jagi," Baekhyun interjected. Sehun gave a nod. He wrote a receipt and handed it to the blonde.

"Have a wonderful day! Also, make sure to use protection!" Sehun said, bidding us farewell.

"Yah! Oh Sehun. Grow up!"

"Can't say I didn't warn ya," he winked and smiled.

~Author's Note~

💕 Happy Chen Day! 💕

Happy Birthday to our first father of EXO! 

Hope you like my gift. 

I really enjoyed writing this chapter. Especially because I wanted to thank You-know-who 👀 A letter if I say so myself. 

Forgot to mention, try google-ing what a "Hang-In-There" is. It's a type of korean ice cream eaten to cure hangovers. 

And our guest has made his appearance for this chapter. Oh Sehun!​​​​ 🎉

I am sorry if he is married in this story. Please don't hate his fictional wife either. Love you all! Till next time ✨