"Kim Kibum," Han Geng called, as the rest of the class was pouring out of the room. "I want you to stay here for a minute."
            "Ne, ssaem," Kibum said with a polite nod. Although they were close in real life, Kibum always treated Geng as respectfully as Teacher's Assistant should be treated by a student. He put his stuff in his backpack and walked towards Han Geng, who was sitting on the edge of the stage in the front of the classroom, a serious expression on his face. 
            "What is it, ssaem?" 
            Han Geng beckoned Kibum down to sit next to him, so that they we were face-to-face. "Kibum, right now I'm going to be talking to you as a teacher, not a friend."
            Kibum nodded again, feeling rather nervous now.
            "You've barely been keeping up in class, Kibum,” he said seriously. “Each time I have you prepare a performance, I have no choice but to give it a poor grade. Can you explain this to me?"
            "I…" he hesitated. "I don't know."
            Han Geng looked at him, pushing further, "Kibum, when you came to this university, you truly shone as an actor. You were one of the most promising in your class, and you improved faster than anyone else. I'm saying this, even though I was just your sunbae then, not your teacher. I know," Han Geng paused, swallowing thickly. "I really hate to scold anyone, and I know that freshman year was especially hard for you, but you need to push past that. If you want to remain in this class, and ultimately succeed as an actor, I need to start seeing the Kibum I saw two years ago."
            Kibum nodded again, but he nodded at the ground rather than at his teacher. Han Geng sighed, and then said in a softer tone, "Now I'm speaking to you as a friend. As Heechul's best friend, and someone who's known you since elementary, I think we've always been close and I know how you feel. Is the…incident…what's been holding you back?"
            "Hyung," Kibum addressed him, since Geng had stepped out of his teacher persona. "I don't feel it anymore. I never feel like acting anymore. It feels wrong. I…"
            Kibum cleared his throat, as if that would clear away all the emotions that were choking him. "I used to work hard at being an actor, thinking that I only had completed 1% of my dreams, feeling that I could never give up, but now it feels like I don't have any dreams at all. Each time I try to perform, all I can think about is…him. And everything gets blocked, and I can't get into character, and it's so wrong."
            Han Geng sighed sympathetically and threw his arm around his shoulder, smiling gently. "I don't think I'm the right person to help you with this. I have another close hoobae who is in your grade. You might have seen him around, and he reminds me a lot of how you used to be."
            "Hyung, I don't know. I don't really like the idea of a complete stranger helping me out." Kibum crossed his arms defiantly, but still looked at the ground, unable to truly get angry at Han Geng, his closest hyung.
            "Kibum-ah, trust me. I think some healthy competition would be good for you. And, he almost has as much passion as you do."           
            Slightly more interested, Kibum met Han Geng's eyes and asked, "Who?"
            "Choi Siwon."

                                                                                                                     ~*~

            Ryeowook walked into the coffeeshop, after spending quite some time searching for it in the streets of Seoul. He grinned when he finally saw it, rolling his shoulders and head in exhaustion. “Ugh, finally!” He pushed open the doors, half-excited that he found the doors at last, half-angry at them for being so difficult to find. Ryeowook walked up to the clerk by the register, asking,           

            “Excuse me, but is Kyuhyun here?”

            The blonde-haired clerk nodded and said cheerfully, “Right back there, sir!” He pointed to a door near the back of the store, labeled, Employees Only. Ryeowook nodded in thanks and hurried to it, bursting through the doors, exclaiming,

            “I’m so sorry I’m late, Kyuhyun-ah!” He stopped short when he saw two other young men sitting in the room. Both of them looked really young, maybe Ryeowook’s age or younger. They had been lounging around and chatting with Kyuhyun, who stood up and clapped Ryeowook on the back, leading the embarrassed Wookie further into the room to sit next to him at the table.

            “Wookie-ah,” Kyuhyun said. “These are my two hyungs, Sungmin and Jungsu. Their mothers also founded Kona Beans.”

            Ryeowook greeted them happily while Kyuhyun warned, “Treat them with respect, Wook-ah. They’re much older than they look.”

            “Yah, Cho Kyuhyun,” the one with the black hair complained. “You tell him to treat us with respect, and then go on and call us old?”

            The brunette shook his head. “Has he ever been really respectful?”

            Kyuhyun just laughed. “Well, at least you have a new dongsaeng who can be respectful. He’s my friend, the one I told you about, who’s studying music at Seoul National University, Kim Ryeowook. He’s twenty-one.”

            “Annyeong,” greeted the black-haired man. “I’m Lee Sungmin, and I’m twenty-four.”

            The brunette smiled, a dimple denting his cheek, “Annyeong. I’m Park Jungsu, and I’m twenty-six, but I hope we can still be good friends.”           

            Ryeowook gasped involuntarily. “They really are old!”

            Jungsu laughed ruefully. “Compared to people as young and fresh as you and Kyuhyun, yes, I am. But I still got a lot left in me.”

            Kyuhyun rolled his eyes and said, “Yeah, yeah, Jungsu hyung, just keep telling yourself that. But Ryeowook-ah, you said you had a favor to ask, something about singing?”

            “Oh, right,” A faint color came to his cheeks. “Uh, I was hoping you could help me with my showcase project. Since you have such a good voice, and all.”           

            “Ah, I knew it would be something like that,” Kyuhyun grinned. “That’s why I asked these two guys—“

            “That kid, referring to us so informally,” Jungsu grumbled.

            “—to come,” Kyuhyun continued, ignoring his hyung. “They’re both really good at piano and singing, and Sungmin plays guitar while Jungsu plays the saxophone.”

            “Seriously?!”

            “Seriously,” Sungmin said with an eager smile. “We’d be really glad to help you.”’

            “My piece is going to be so good!” Ryeowook said, feeling relieved that he would have help getting over his musician’s block. “I’m already feeling really inspired.”           

                                                                                                                     ~*~

            "_____-ah!" Song Qian called, poking her head into your room. "I was thinking of going to Sinchon. Do you want to go shopping with me?"
            You glanced up at her, temporarily distracted from the speech you were writing for class. You opened your mouth, ready to reject her, as you usually did because you were always too tired or never in the mood to go out. But upon catching sight of the hopeful look in her eyes, you couldn't say no. Reluctant but not really bothered, you agreed, "Okay, Qiannie. Let me just save this and wear something besides my pajamas."
            Song Qian squealed, "Are you kidding me?! Yay! I'm so excited!"
            You laughed. She rushed to the closet you shared and started rummaging through your side. "You have to wear something cute," she muttered to herself. "You've been dressing like a slob for far too long."
            "Gee, thanks," you rolled your eyes, shutting your laptop.
            "It's true!" she cried from your closet. "Oh my gosh, we are going to get you so many cute clothes. Even if you run out of money, I'll pay."
            You laughed again, then walked over to the closet and leaned against the doorframe. "Qiannie, please. If we're going to Sinchon, just jeans and a t-shirt are okay."
            She ignored you completely, and eventually pulled out a pair of brightly colored jeans, along with a loose, flowing tank top with intricate embroidery and a matching cardigan. 
            "Qiannie! I'd rather go in sweatpants."
            "No!" she protested vehemently. "You're lucky I didn't pick a skirt!"
            "Fine," you surrendered. "But you're going to buy me food later."
            "Call," she complied happily. You pulled on the outfit then she pulled you out the door, practically running from excitement.
            It's been so long since you've been out that you forgot what Sinchon was like. You just followed Qian everywhere, letting her pick all the shops. You stepped in boutique after boutique, and Song Qian always managed to find at least a bag full of things while you could barely pick out a single shirt.
            "Yah, Qianne," you barked after she had started asking you to carry even more bags. "How can you buy so much? Why don't you spend your money on school books instead?"
            She laughed. "Don't be silly, _____! I already have all my books. This is extra."
            You pouted, and when she noticed, she mussed your hair and said, "Aigoo, our _____ is tired! Arasso, arasso, I'll buy you something to eat. What do you want, street food or a place where we can sit?"
            You deliberated carefully before answering, "A place where we can sit! I'm so tired from watching you shop that I really just want to sit down and stuff my face."
            She nodded agreeably and grabbed your hand, leading you to a small little meat restaurant, one of the places where you could grill your own meat. You sighed happily as soon as you sat down, feeling the tension in your leg muscles finally relax.           
            As the two of you ate, Song Qian met your eyes and raised her eyebrows curiously, “Sooo, are you finally going to tell me about this boy?” She had clearly been holding in her interrogation the entire day, and you could see in the way she was bouncing in her seat in anticipation that she was dying to know some details.

            “We just met,” you replied, a faint blush dancing across your cheeks. “But I think I’m going to like him a lot. He’s a musical genius, apparently, and his name is Henry Lau.”

            “Henry Lau?” she asked, eye wide. “He’s friends with my little sister, Eunyoung! I’m pretty sure we’re talking about the same guy, but Eunyoungie is always going on about her best friend Henry.”

            You furrowed your brows, a little thrown-off by this fact, but you just shrugged. “It’s a small world.”

            “He’s a really great guy, even if he’s younger. He’s got his head on straight and he works really hard.” She threw her arms in the air and flailed them around in celebration. “_____! I’m so excited for you!”

            “Guess what?” you , knowing the news would make her even more excited. “I’m going to see him later today.”

            Qian almost choked on her beef. “What?!”

            “Are you okay, Qiannie?” you asked, leaning closer to pat her on the back.

            Song Qian shoved your hand away and said, aghast, “You’re going on your first date in two years, and you’re looking like that?”

            You looked down, not really seeing what was wrong with your outfit. But you decided to let Song Qian be the boss here and admitted with a sigh, “I guess I should look good for this date.”

            Song Qian chugged her cup of water before slamming it on the table and jumping up. “We’re leaving,” she said imperatively. “We need to find you something cute to wear, and then we have to put some makeup on your face, and then…your hair.”

            You rolled your eyes, but you quickly swallowed the remains of your lunch and followed Qian out of the restaurant. She was chattering the whole way about ideas for you outfit for tonight, but you were only half-listening. You just smiled at her back, appreciative of a friend like her. 

A/N: Double update! And Super Junior is alive!!! Hahaha I can't wait to bring them all in muhahaha. Eunyoung is Amber, in case anyone forgot or didn't know ^o^ I think that's it for now. Read on!