“Oops,” Luhan says, lazy smiles disappearing from his lips. “Is this a bad time?”

If this wasn’t the perfect opportunity to stop the two boys that you liked from ripping you apart between them, then you weren’t optimistic at making it out of here in one piece. You look at Suho and he reluctantly releases his grip on your wrist. You paste on your perkiest, happiest smile and take a deep breath. “Not at all! Nice to finally meet you Luhan.  My name is Jaemi. I’m your fill-in to help Sehun stay caffeinated.”

Luhan gives you a pained look, “Finally! Someone else to help me keep this bundle of nerves from exploding,” and ruffled Sehun’s hair tenderly.

Someone cleared their voice and you realized there were 5 other boys in the room who you had no sweet clue who they were. “Uh, Luhan, did you just happen to come back from a photo shoot and these are you model friends?” You pose, very intrigued. You were very aware that said boys had just interrupted two boys fighting over you, but your single self was wanting to flex its claws.

Luhan smiles brightly, “These are my roommates,” He introduces the boys, each nodding when he hears his name. There so many flavors too! A tall and serious guy, one guy with killer cheekbones, another looked a little zoned out still and one even reminded you of a panda! The last guy Luhan introduced as Baozi. “Baozi” frowned and Luhan laughed hysterically.

Yuna came over with an uncertain look “Baozi?” It became obvious to you that she wasn’t that interested in the boy’s nickname. She hugged your shoulder tightly to her body. Yuna may not be able to help you in your relationship problems at the moment, but she was certainly going to support you.

“It’s Chinese for steamed bun,” smiles panda-boy, Tao.

You tilt your head at Baozi/ Xuimin. “I think I see it.”

“Hyung, why are you here with everyone?” Sehun asks.

“Tao started to complain about how hot the dorm was,” Lay supplies.

“Then he used his aegyo on Kris,” Chen looked side-long at the tall guy.

Kris hides an embarrassed laugh behind his hand.

“So I thought, how fun would it be to go with everyone!” Luhan says happily. His smile falters when no one cheers back other than Sehun.

“Actually, Xuimin just really wanted to meet you girls,” Lay whispered to you and Yuna.

Chanyeol came over and protectively tugged Yuna into a back hug. “We had a late night. I don’t know if we’re all up for an early morning swim.”

Two forms stood in front of you as well. Even if Kai and Suho couldn’t agree who you belonged to, they could agree that no other guys were getting their hooks in you.

“Kai was about to have a very important talk with Jaemi.”

“She’s definitely not going swimming with you.”

“But guys!!!’ moans Sehun. “I want to go!!!”

“I’ve got a part-time job to go to...” Baeyoung grimaces, picking herself up and leaving.

Baekhyun pats his sister on the back, “It might be a good way to escape the tension.”

“I second that motion,” mutters Kyungsoo from the table.

You look back at Yuna, caught between a cuddly Chanyeol and worry for you. You give her a questioning look and she shrugs with a smile. It was up to you. You elbow your way between your two body guards, giving them each a square glare.

You smile at sharp cheek bone guy, Chen. “We don’t want the two maknae’s unhappy, do we?”

“That settles it then,” claps Luhan in finality.

“We’ll just... wait outside then I guess,” Kris says when no one moves. The new boys all file out and leave the apartment back to square one.

Suho and Kai have matching frowns directed to you.

“Aren’t you hung over?”

“Shouldn’t you go home and clean up?”

You were going to ignore Kai’s implied insult and Suho’s hint to your health. You were going to have to work magic to get past these two. You smile wickedly “Sounds to me like you guys don’t want to see me in a swim suit. That’s a sin because I have just the one in mind...”

You look around for someone else to aid you. Your eyes narrow at Kyungsoo who, when he sees you’ve narrowed in on him, gets scared. You strut to Kyungsoo, leaning over behind him. “I needed someone to tell me if it looks good. How about you Kyungsoo? You seem like the type of guy who would know if a bikini would look good on a girl or not.”

“Bikini?” squeaked Kyungsoo, his eyes getting wider the longer time he had to take in what you were asking.

“Yuna, what color is your bathing suit? Wouldn’t it be awesome if we matched?” interrupted Sehun from his frantic packing. Chanyeol grumbles and Yuna bites back a smile. “Why isn’t anyone else moving?”

“I’ve got the towels!” yells Kyungsoo, slipping from your paws.

“If I don’t grab the suntan lotion, Sehun will probably burn himself,” Baekhyun takes his chances with the hyper maknae.

“Uh, we’ll wait outside for you Jaemi,” Yuna says tugging Chanyeol out the door.

When it was only the three of you, Kai and Suho suddenly realized they weren’t on the same team anymore and flew apart.

“This isn’t finished,” Kai warns, eyes flashing.

“There’s nothing else to say,” disagrees Suho through clenched teeth.

You had enough. It was clear these two were to into hating each other to have any fun. You know it was bad that you had told the two of them that you liked both of them. You also knew it was bad of you to not have made a clear decision either. But, you had a pounding headache, a bruised heart and dry throat. You wanted to go see how Seoul cooled down. You wanted to flirt innocently with the new boys. You wanted to help Chanyeol push Yuna into water. This was happening.

You slap your hand against the now unoccupied table. Both boys jump at the noise. “Now that I have your attention, if you’ll allow for me to talk...?” You pause pointedly. Both boys looked abashed, which satisfies you. “We’re going to go swimming. I want you both on your best behavior.” You walk to the door and stop before you turn the door knob. “And please try to remember; I belong to no one.”

Yuna chewed her lip and swung Chanyeol’s arm violently. Chanyeol looked like he couldn’t take the pain but was holding it in for Yuna’s sake. Baeyoung is dejectedly slumped against the wall. Yuna perks up when you come to the bottom of the stairs.

“So?” Yuna prods.

“I don’t see Kai or Suho, so I think it’s safe to assume we’re going. Unless you’re coming down to tell us you’re staying home to settle this, because I really don’t enjoy an arguing household—”

“Chanyeol!” scolds Yuna.

“Hey, I’m not the one disrupting our circle of friends,” Chanyeol shrugs his shoulders.

You flinch. “Sorry Chanyeol. I didn’t mean for this to happen. Can you allow me a one-day grace period? I need to get over this hangover and figure out my decision.”

Yuna sends a scolding glance at Chanyeol “Take your time Jaemi. Take all the time you need.”

You You go to Chanyeol’s side and take his hand. Chanyeol is shocked looking to Yuna for guidance. You and Yuna exchange grins. “Come one Channie-boy! Walk us to our houses so we can get our bathing suits. Won’t you be the talk of Seoul, walking with two extremely good looking foreign girls?”

Yuna and you chatter back and forth about how friendly the new boys seem. You quickly swing to your house to leave Chanyeol and Yuna alone for a bit.

“How was your sleepover? Did you have fun?” Tae He asks, lounging on the porch in the backyard.

“We, uh, got acquainted with Soju.”

“Ah yes. That guy I am well aware of. And did boys get involved?” pumped Tae He for more information.

“Actually, I confessed to Kai and Suho overheard and I slept in Suho’s bed and Kai’s really angry this morning, so—”

Tae He sighs heavily, “You don’t have to make up anything to entertain me. I get it. I’ll keep my nose out of it.”

You smile to yourself. She didn’t believe the real version. Wasn’t that ironic? “We’re going swimming with a bunch of friends. I’ve got my cell phone if you need anything!” You yell from your bedroom, searching for you bathing suit.

You pondered which one to take. You had new and old boys to impress. That one showed your figure off better but this one was flirty. You finally decided on an emerald-green 50’s inspired one piece. It made you feel like you were y and ready to take on the world. You quickly change into it, grabbing some loose clothing to cover up, a towel and changed to flip-flops. You were prepared for whatever the world wanted to throw at you.

“Don’t break too many hearts,” Tae he calls after you.

You find Yuna and Chanyeol arguing when you knock hesitantly on the still open door.

“That is not enough material,” Chanyeol says, pointing at Yuna’s super cute bathing suit. She must have put it on to show Chanyeol and Chanyeol was pulling his protective card again.

“It’s the only thing I have!” Yuna argues, stamping her foot.

You watch Chanyeol battle with smiling at how cute Yuna was angry. “Then we don’t have to go. You do not need Luhan without a shirt.”

Yuna looks confused, “Luhan’s an innocent looking deer! Yeol, it’s not that bad!”

“Are you guys ready?” you try to interrupt without getting in the middle.

Yuna looked relieved you were there, “Jaemi! Tell him girls were this stuff all the time!”

“Hey, I’m with Chanyeol here. You look hot.”

Yuna rolls her eyes and puffs out her frustration, “Thanks for the support, bestie.”

You go to swing your arm around Chanyeol’s shoulder amiably but with your flip flop’s, the best you could manage with Chanyeol’s height was to slug him one in the shoulder. “You’re just going to have to face it; you’ve got a beautiful girlfriend. You can’t very well hide her in your bedroom for the rest of your life.”

Chanyeol’s face becomes considerable less stubborn. “I can try.”

Yuna kisses Chanyeol on the cheek and runs to grab something to cover up in. “We’ll have a good time, I promise.”

The three of you barely start up the big hill towards the boys’ dorm when you hear Sehun yell “WHAT TOOK YOU GUYS SO LONG?! WE’VE GOTTA GET A GOOD SPOT!”

Yuna covers her ears “We are definitely stopping to get some caffeine for him.”

Your large group headed for one of the Hangang Riverside pools. You were practically drooling at the chance to see all the boys shirtless. You were sadly let down, however. Almost everyone kept their shirts on. Kai, of course, was the first one to remove his. Chanyeol removed Yuna to another side of the pool. Suho frowned and his shirt came off as well.

“CANONBALL!” hooted Sehun and he ran to jump in the pool with no convictions. Luhan chuckled at him, sitting at the edge.

“Sehun, the sign says no running!” Suho yells.

Kris, Lay and Chen laid out in the shade on some lawn chairs. Kyungsoo evilly pushes Baekhyun into the pool. “Kyungsoo, my eyeliner—”

You move to lay down your items and strip off your cover up. Your hands freeze at your hem as you realize you’ve got an audience. Should you act shy or sassy right now? Kai steps in front of you before you can wave to the three boys sitting.

“I’ll shield you so you can take your clothes off,” Kai says, shielding his eyes from the sun.

“I don’t believe I asked for your help,” you say, stepping back to the new boys back in view. Kai steps back as well.

You sigh in frustration and almost rip your shirt in the process of taking it off. “You looking to add a fourth guy to make this a love triangle?” snaps Kai.

You blink, “Excuse me? Who was the one who confessed last night and who didn’t respond.”

Kai puts his hand down and looks at you, “I wasn’t given a chance...”

“I’m not having this discussion right now,” You say doggedly. You did not want to hear how you were a nice girl but just not girlfriend material from Kai.

You snatch Sehun’s backpack. “I wonder if Baekhyun packed the... SEHUN WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?” You yell, holding a small foil-wrapped package between thumb and forefinger.

Sehun freezes at the tone of your voice, even though he’s in the midst of a splash battle with Luhan, Tao and Xuimin, “Huh?”

Chen lowers his sunglasses “Is that...”

Baekhyun tries to shake water from his face “Can’t be.”

Blood leaves Sehun’s face as you come closer with the offending object. “That’s not mine.”

You flick the on the ground. “It came from your backpack.”

 Suho looked concerned. “When could he have bought that?”

Yuna came over to referee, “I’m sure it’s a mistake Jaemi.”

“No one buys condoms unless they’re planning to have !” You say, outraged. “Here I thought you were the safe and cute one. I don’t think I’ll be able to receive a hug from you ever again.”

“Jaemi!” cries Sehun at your crossed arms.

Kyungsoo bursts out into laughter. “Your guys’ faces,” he continues to chortle in glee, “Best prank ever!”

Sehun’s face gets red and very dark. “You messed with the wrong maknae today.”

Kyungsoo runs for safety as Sehun hauls himself out of the pool.

“No running I said!!!” Suho dashes after them at a safer pace.

“You guys were always the rowdy bunch,” observes Kris from his chair.

“See, Sehun’s not planning on having ,” Yuna blushes at her own statement.

You battle a blush of your own. “Good because I’m not ready to be the one to have the birds and the bees talk with him.”

Everyone relaxes and enjoys themselves. You find yourself enjoying the chicken fight: Yuna on Chanyeol’s shoulders versus you on Baekhyun’s. You find that the cold water, the fresh air and sunshine were a good remedy for your slight hangover. It made you forget that your mouth still tasted like a desert was in there.

After Suho convinced Sehun not to drown Kyungsoo in the pool, you walked towards him with the intentions of apologizing. You didn’t mean to embarrass him like that. You smile as a pair kids run towards you. The little boy trips over a discarded pool toy and crashes into you. You wheel your arms for some balance so you don’t fall in when at arm swoops behind your back. You look in surprise to find Lay beaming down at you. “That was a close one.” Wow, up close, he really had nice skin.

“I owe you one,” You breath out.

“Don’t mention it,” Lay smiles again, showing a dimple.

You see some motion in the corner of your eye before your brain can process your weakness; you watch as Suho and Kai are striding towards you with purpose. “Really?” you mutter under your breath, preparing for another fight.

“Is something the matter?” asks Lay.

“You could say I’ve got some really protective friends right now,” you tip your head in Kai’s direction then Suho’s.

Lay’s eyes widen in understanding. “I heard about them fighting over a girl.”

“How about you snatch me away to the lawn chairs. Kris looks like he’s got a face that could stop someone in their tracks if they were about to annoy him,” You suggest as an escape plan.

“I don’t mind helping a new friend out,” shrugs Lay and the two of you do as you suggest.

Suho and Kai look flabbergasted as you perch on Lay’s chair in between Kris and Chen’s.

“I just thought us foreigners should stick together,” you joke, specifically not paying attention to Kai or Suho who were only steps away.

“You moved from Canada, right?” Kris asks in English.

You gasp in happiness. “Someone else who can speak in English? I love you!” You gush. “Yuna! Kris speaks English!” You yell, cupping your hands for added volume.

“That’s awesome!” waves back Yuna. Chanyeol looks pouty and Yuna pats him on the head.

“We’re all playing Marco Polo!” shouts Tao from the pool.

“I’M IT FIRST!” screams Sehun, splashing through the shallow end to take his place.

Everyone good-naturedly takes a place in the pool. With your short stature, you were sure that you were going to be the first one Sehun caught. Chanyeol immediately placed a giggling Yuna on the diving board. That made you feel a little melancholy. You wanted to have a boy to look after you. What you didn’t expect were the hands that gripped your waist and moved you out the way just as Sehun’s hands had come for you. He smacked into a floundering Xuimin instead.

You look back and find a smiling Kai.

“What are you—” Kai moves you out of the way as Xuimin bulldozes at you.

“No one’s going to run away from you if you’re it,” Kai tells you.

“So this is purely so the game will continue?”

“Marco!” calls out Baekhyun.

“Polo,” you answer and Kai grunts as he pulls you back to his chest to keep you out of Baekhyun’s reach. “And how long will you be keeping this up?”

“It’s safe to stick with me. I’ll make sure no one catches you,” Kai murmurs in your ear.

“Do not try to mind- me right now Kai,” You squirm to turn around.

Kai acts distracted “Not now Jaemi, Tao’s it!”

“Yeah and I’m sure you meant what you just said. You going to tell me how you’re going to save all the hungry children in the world too?” You shout.

“Gotchya!’ Tao yells and wraps his arms around you.

“,” you say, realizing Kai had been telling the truth.

Kai rolled his eyes. “Now I’m going to have to work harder.”

You stomp to the beginning of the shallow end and count to 10 before shouting half-heartedly “Marco.”

“POLO!” roars back to you. You swear you can every single boy in that pool.

“Marco?” you say tentatively.

“Po—off,” You turn to your right but find nothing but water.

“Marco...”

“Jaemi I’m over—” Lay’s voice is cut off.

“This is a little creepy guys,” you say, your eyes still closed. Slowly but surely the voices disappear. You get a little shiver. “I’m not laughing!”

“Marco!” you yell in frustration when all you hear is silence. 

Your shoulder brushes something warm and your hand lashes out. Your other hand follows and you grip the body in front of you. When no one says anything you open your eyes to some very bronze chest. Your eyes move up to those pouty lips you’ve touched before. They shape the word “Polo” very slowly.

“You bastard,” You curse and Kai smirks.

You look around. It looks like Kai eliminated all his opponents to be the last one left for you to tag. Everyone was either nursing a limb or glaring at Kai. Kai grabs your arms before you can remove them. “Winner gets a prize right?” Kai lifts an eyebrow suggestively.

“Maybe we should all be getting home now,” interrupts Suho.

You smile, “That sounds like a lovely idea, Suho. Why don’t you walk me home so I can give you that jacket you left at my house?”

Instead of getting Kai angry, like you hoped, Kai got cockier. “I think someone needs to cool down more,” and with that comment, Kai tosses you over his shoulder and makes his way to the deep end.

“Kai! You cannot just toss me where ever you—” you can’t talk anymore when the water goes over your head as Kai heaves you into the deep end.

You stubbornly sink to the bottom. You could hold your air for a long time. Let’s see how long before he starts to worry.

You watch Kai’s legs underwater. Kai taps his foot impatiently. Then he fidgets from foot to foot. Finally he dives down after you. You wave at him cheekily from the bottom. Kai swims towards you, grabs your arm painfully, and drags the two of you to the surface.

“What did you think you were doing?” yells Kai as you both reach the surface.

“You’re the one who threw me in. What if I couldn’t handle the deep water?” You ask, pushing your chin up stubbornly.

“Are you alright?” asks Suho.

 “I’m fine,” you call back.

“I thought I had...” Kai says softly.

“Serves you right, you pretentious—”

You had one tiny warning. Kai went from desperate worried to angry worried. And angry Kai meant rash decisions. And by rash decisions you meant you weren’t able to call Kai anymore names because those pouty lips that you had touched, were kissing you with quite a lot of passion at the moment.