“Shut up!” Daphne yelled over Scarlett’s squeals, placing her hands over her ears to mute the horrific sound that was being amplified from Scarlett’s mouth.

“You guys are so cute!” Scarlett gushed from the couch, almost spilling her drink out of excitement. “I knew this would happen. I just knew it!”

It was a bright and early Saturday morning, and despite the fatigue that Daphne felt from the lack of sleep and from last night’s concert, she forced herself to wake up in order to study. However, Scarlett violently urged Daphne to spill all of last night’s contents, forcing Daphne to withdraw from studying and inform Scarlett about everything that had happened. When it came to the point where Daphne had to explain her situation with Yoseob, Scarlett grew wild.

“You need to stop,” Daphne said sternly, but her serious facade promptly eroded as she let out a chuckle while she propped her textbook open on her lap, hoping for some solitude so she could read.

“What? I’m just happy for you!” Scarlett exclaimed, bouncing enthusiastically on the couch. “So you guys are...official now?” She pressed on. “This is adorable. It’s as if this came out of a high school movie or something.” Sighing heavily, she prodded Daphne in the arm harshly. “That’s not fair. You weren’t even looking for a relationship and you get one. Where’s mine?”

“What happened to Kikwang?” Daphne muttered as she flipped through her book.

“I don’t know!” Scarlett said, narrowing her eyes at Daphne. “We never got to exchange numbers, so you’re our only means of communication, but you’ve been too busy living up your fairy tale.”

She looked up and faced Scarlett with a raised eyebrow. “Our relationship isn’t anything special. It just happened, really...I wouldn’t call it, you know, a fairy tale or anything.”

“Yeah, but it’s still cute.”

Daphne shrugged indifferently. She honestly didn’t see what was so special about being in a relationship. The dazed effects were almost entirely worn out now that reality had sunken in once more, taking the form of her Biology exam that was taking place in a few days. Sure, it felt nice to know that someone actually liked her for who she was, but what was so great about it? She didn’t feel like Yoseob wasn’t any more of a friend than he was before, and their friendship only blossomed to one that involved physical intimacy, which she enjoyed nonetheless, but it didn’t add a new level of depth to anything. Daphne didn’t even dare to use the term ‘boyfriend.’ Just the mere connotation of the word sent shivers down her spine because of how elementary it sounded.

Boyfriends weren’t a new thing for Daphne at all; in fact, she had her share of relationships in the past, but she felt like none of them ever mattered. So what if they had feelings for each other? Then what? Does getting involved into a relationship change any of the chemistry that they had already previously established? And what about when that flame dies down and the infatuation fades away. What then? Marriage? Surely not.

“I feel kinda bad,” Daphne confided as she chewed on her pen contemplatively, staring down at the dark carpet. “I mean, we’re going to be leaving in about...four months? What’ll happen then?”

“You...try to make things work?” Scarlett questioned with a skeptical tone, as if it was such an obvious answer. “Oh, no,” she continued, shaking her head, “you’re having commitment issues again.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You do this every time, Daphne!” Scarlett breathed out, continuing to shake her head in disagreement. “No, no, this Yoseob guy sounds really decent. I am not letting you screw this up.”

“Scarlett...what the hell are you saying?”


“Do you remember all of the guys you’ve dated in the past? Ryan? Ben? Andrew?”

“I don’t see how this connects to being committed,” Daphne huffed bitterly, insulted of such an accusation. “I dated Andrew for two years!”

“Yeah, but you always had the same excuse for all of them: I don’t see a future with them,” Scarlett elaborated, growing slightly frustrated. “I just don’t understand. Relationships don’t always require a future to them. It’s all in the emotions!”

“Yeah, and you saw how that went with Andrew,” Daphne remarked, rolling her eyes. “We were ‘in love’ for a year and then everything crashed and burned after that. Everything was so mundane and dry. There was no point in our relationship anymore. If I don’t see a future with someone, why am I supposed to stay with them?”

“Not everything has to end in marriage. I don’t understand why you can’t enjoy the moment while you’re in it.”

“Do you mind?” Daphne hastily attempted to end the conversation, feeling a bit heated. “I have to study.”

With a sharp exhale, Scarlett stood up from the couch, not out of resentment but out of disappointment. It was always typical of Daphne to overanalyze everything and sabotage herself out of a good relationship. She just wished that Daphne was more willing to grasp that gist rather than stay stubborn in her own bubble. That was Daphne for you, thought Scarlett. Daphne always emphasized on the practical aspects of life. If it wasn’t going to assist her in the long run, then why bother? Scarlett just wished that Daphne would finally let loose. This uptight behavior was always her downfall when it came to almost everything, but Daphne failed to see it.
With a look of defeat, Scarlett nodded her head, sullen, and stood up from the couch, leaving Daphne alone in the living room to contemplate by herself.

Trying her best to contain the fuming emotions raging inside of her, Daphne let out an extended breath to calm herself. She didn’t understand Scarlett’s argument; not only did it not make sense to her, it made her question her relationship with Yoseob even more. The more she dwelled on it, the more convinced she was that she made the wrong decision. However, she brushed her conflicting thoughts away and scanned the lines of her textbook, hoping she could be able to soak any kind of information in despite the chaos in her life.

It was odd during dance practice that night without the presence of the BEAST members. After seeing them consistently for two and a half months, Daphne couldn’t help but feel strange that there were now six missing bodies from practice. Everything was finally drifting back to its original state, and although it was going to take time to get used to, Daphne was more than happy to know that practice was going to be less gruesome.

However, despite the easier practice, Daphne was still panting by the end, yearning for that sip of ice cold water streaming down her dry throat. She was slumped against the wall with her sore legs sprawled out, chugging the water bottle.

“Whoa, slow down there.” Jihee laughed as she approached Daphne, squatting down to be at eye-level with Daphne. “Why are you so tired?”

“I don’t know,” Daphne said after another large gulp of water. It was questionable why Daphne was so drained. Jihee made sure to not overwork everybody, but Daphne felt like her limbs were going to fall off. Every bit of her body felt fatigue and it was hard to ignore the awful pain that her feet was experiencing. “I’ve practiced harder before...”

“I know,” Jihee acknowledged, frowning. “Get some rest, hon.” She stood up and peered down at Daphne who was still sitting. “Come on. I’ll give you a ride home.”

A ride back sounded too good to pass up, but Daphne’s lingering eyes coincidentally landed upon the door of the practice room. There, in the small window, was Yoseob, waving enthusiastically at Daphne. She repressed a large grin, but unfortunately realized that she had to dismiss Jihee’s offer.

“I’ll be fine,” Daphne replied nervously, following suit and standing up as well, hoping Jihee would not acknowledge Yoseob’s presence outside the door. She had yet to tell anyone from the dance group about her relationship with Yoseob, and she preferred if it stayed that way. She smoothed out the wrinkles of her shirt and smiled. “Thanks though.”

“You sure? I don’t know, Daphne. You seem really tired.”

“I’m perfectly okay. I promise,” Daphne insisted, slinging her bag around her shoulders. She placed a reassuring hold onto Jihee’s shoulder and smiled once more, hoping that Jihee would be swayed in her favor.

“Positive?”

“Entirely positive,” Daphne said, walking Jihee to the exit, opening it in the process. Thankfully, Yoseob caught on and hid behind the door, hiding from Jihee.

“Oh, crap,” Daphne feigned, rummaging her bag for an added effect as she and Jihee walked down the hallway towards the elevator. “I think I forgot something. You go ahead, Jihee. I’ll go back and get it.”

“You don’t want me to wait for you?” Jihee questioned, raising a curious eyebrow. “I can just--”

“No!” Daphne exclaimed a bit too loudly, giving Jihee suspicions. “I mean...” She cleared awkwardly, running her hands through her hair. “I don’t want to keep you here too long. I’ll be okay!”

Jihee paused slightly, still maintaining the same odd look, attempting to read Daphne’s expressions. Finally, she curtly nodded, smiling. “You are so weird, but okay. I’ll see you tomorrow!”

Glad that Jihee was leaving, Daphne waved excitedly at Jihee while walking back to the room. Once she closed the door behind her, she was met with Yoseob with an amused expression.

“Very smooth,” Yoseob stated, smiling from ear to ear.

“What are you doing here?” Daphne asked, ignoring his comment. A large grin was tugging on the ends of her lips, but she hid her elated emotion.

“We’re taking a break from practice,” Yoseob nonchalantly answered, grabbing Daphne’s arm to pull her closer towards him. “What, you don’t want to see me?”

“No,” Daphne stated coldly, but she couldn’t handle joking anymore as she let out a small chuckle, nuzzling into Yoseob’s neck as he held her tightly. “You don’t have to do this...” There it was again. That conflicting feeling that always hindered her relationship with Yoseob. Whenever his presence was absent, she felt as if their relationship meant almost nothing, but when she was with him, it was an entirely different story. He made her dismiss all of her doubts, and it was frustrating for Daphne to constantly battle her conflicting thoughts out.

“I want to. How else are we going to see each other?”

“You’re honestly going to do this every night?”

“That’s my plan.” Yoseob peered down at her and flashed a bright smile before kissing her forehead, a strong sense of euphoria surging through his body. He was still incredulous about this entire situation. The fact that he had finally achieved what he was yearning for so long still left him in awe.

Daphne couldn’t help but smile at his charming words, feeling her heart flutter slightly. Although she was still very hesitant about their relationship, she couldn’t deny the happiness that she felt when she was with him. Yoseob made her forget about all of her worries and she loved that about him. His presence was a refuge for her, soothing her problems away. However, despite everything, her logical side always got the best of her, polluting her happiness and eroding it away. This time though, she shook it off, wanting to relish in the temporary moment that they had together. Her mind was jumbled with a plethora of things, and she wanted nothing more than to clear her head and relax.

“How long is your break?” Daphne inquired after a long silence, the couple enjoying their embrace.

“Around fifteen minutes...” Yoseob mumbled, disappointment clear in his tone. “I can always come late though. I’ll just say I had something urgent to do.”

“Like what?”

“Like being with you.”

A loud laugh escaped Daphne’s lips as she tilted her head up to look at Yoseob, hitting his chest playfully. “You are such a cheeseball.”

“Hey, it works, right?” Yoseob grinned, sitting down against the floor, pulling Daphne along with him.

Faking a scowl, she looked at Yoseob, concerned. “I don’t want you to be late and everything for me. We both have lives and we should learn to maintain our relationship without sabotaging our careers.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Yoseob nonchalantly replied, evoking a glare from Daphne. He let out a chuckle and put his arm around her shoulders. “You have nothing to worry about! We’ll find the balance.”

It was strange what Yoseob’s words did to Daphne. Although his comments were ordinary and even brief at times, it completely reassured her, sending a sense of solace. All she could do was nod as she placed her head softly on his shoulder, closing her eyes briefly. Not a single could ruin her relaxed mood--not even the abundant amount of homework and studying that was waiting for her when she was going to get home.

A/N: I apologize for the lateness of this update! I was going to update sooner but I got a bit distracted with things, haha. And honestly, I really, really, hate this chapter. I mean, it's a filler, boring, and lacking, but /sigh, I couldn't combine it with another chapter or it'd lose the flow. T___T. Just know that there is a LOT of foreshadowing here. Hope you guys aren't too disappointed with this. ): ! Anyway, my finals are next week (eek!) and I really have to buckle down and focus! That said, I probably won't update in another two weeks maybe? I'm not sure. You guys know how I am with updating, haha. I always update earlier than I usually intend so we'll see! Hope you guys are having a wonderful week! :)