Hyoyeon hummed quietly to herself as she drove past slow walking civilians one glorious Saturday morning. She’s feeling a little too chipper out in the early sun than usual and she briefly wondered why.

Perhaps it’s because a lot has happened in past couple of weeks? And by a lot she meant the on-going connection her best friend and her ‘boyfriend’ seemed to have growing over the past days.

It didn’t escape her notice the fact that ‘Mr. Broody’ Shim Changmin came by everyday, just as they stepped out of their dreary classrooms to walk her friend to her car or grab a cup of coffee. The first time he came by, he was anxious and felt out of place – towering over Medical students in their University. Yoona had paid no attention to the confused stares their classmates had given her (they were used to seeing Fishy pick her up, standing against his white Lexus and spacing out) and greeted him politely.

They were so cute, Hyoyeon had thought, being so awkward and shy that day as they walked off. It was like one of those clichéd moments in a high school manhwa where the lead characters meet the day after confessing their ‘love’.

Hyoyeon grinned to herself, stepping on the acceleration just a bit and crossed an open intersection. She knew better, of course – that this little game of pretend would lead to something more. It was a typical romantic-comedy plot after all: Brooding guy falls for bright and sunny girl or vice versa after playing the role of ‘husband-and-wife’ to escape trouble only to create more chaos! It fit perfectly.

Sure… things will eventually backfire and there’ll be confusion and lots of denial (on Yoona’s part, she predicted) but all of that could only make things more interesting. She turned at a corner and let her window down, letting the cool morning breeze waft into the interior of her car. Besides, the hero and heroine in the story will always find their way to one another – no matter how much trouble and confusion they go through, because they are meant to be.

Hyoyeon wasn’t sure yet if they were – ‘meant to be’ that is– but she had ways to find out. Yoona had always said that she had a knack of getting even a rock to talk and she’s always been proud of this particular ability. Maybe that’s the reason why she was so happy this morning – because nothing else could make her happier (aside from Eunhyuk, chocolate chip cookies and new shoes) than a makeover.

She grinned, slowing down to a stop near a salon and waved at the sober man standing anxiously and out of place outside the building. Who else would be a perfect candidate for a makeover than Mr. Broody himself?

“Good morning, Broodinator!” Hyoyeon said, waving as she stepped out of her vehicle. Changmin regarded her with a nod, shifting from one foot to the other. She eyed him and noticed the presence of the small whiteboard he carried everywhere. “Aigoo. Why can’t you just talk like a regular human being?”

He rolled his eyes and shrugged, running a hand through his shoulder length hair. His arm wrapped around his board, as if for protection.

Hyoyeon shook her head. “Geez, you really are weird. Oh well, anything is fine as long as we can communicate one way or another.”

When he didn’t respond, she shrugged as well and turned towards the door. Say good-bye to that hobo look, Changmin, Hyoyeon thought, grinning mischievously.

It was a few days ago, after an Anatomy class that ran late and the three of them were walking towards their respective cars. Changmin wasn’t driving his own car, it was Yoona’s but seeing him wait outside the university was so common now – she hadn’t bothered to ask why he walked them there. It was during that short walk that Hyoyeon hinted innocently the idea of a haircut (“I’m thinking of getting a bob. What do you think?”) and Yoona suddenly commented on the length of his. It had begun to curl over his nape and although “it was attractive on him” (Yoona had said this with a slow breath that only served to pique Hyoyeon’s interest over the two even more) – she wasn’t so sure her “father would find it appropriate”.

Changmin wasn’t excited about the prospect of cutting his hair, but Hyoyeon had expected that kind of response. She even half-expected him not to arrive at all, but if her instincts were as good as she was proud of them –she knew that if Yoona asked him to come, he would. He didn’t seem to know how to say “No” to her friend at this point in time and may never will.

Hyoyeon laughed to herself, understanding fully well that was the case and pulled on his sleeve. “Let’s go get your hair cut, Broodster.”

The way his expression turned sour only added to her laughter as she dragged him into the salon. Hyoyeon grinned as thoughts of her plan ran through her mind.

Oh Broody. I am going to have fun torturing you.

The day was turning out to be a particularly uneventful one as far as Yoona was concerned. It was a beautiful Saturday—perfect climate, birds chirping merrily and (for once) an off day from exams and experiments—but now that her morning visit with her father was over, she had the rest of the day to… bum around before she had to stop by again. She frowned at the thought as she stepped very slowly across the expanse of a bridge connecting two wards together. Yoona was not the type to just bum around.

I wonder if I should check in on Sooyoung, she considered, glancing at her watch for the time. It was only half-past ten and she had plenty of time (all day, in fact); a little catching up with her boyfriend’s sister wasn’t so bad and besides she liked Sooyoung a lot.

“Boyfriend.” Yoona repeated the word slowly, letting it roll off her tongue and stopped walking mid-step. In her mind she saw two men’s faces (one was bright and smiling, while the other rolled his eyes and smirked) and pursed her lips, thinking it ridiculous how a person could say one word and think of two people at the same time.

Well, technically Donghae and I are broken up and Changmin’s my boyfriend now – it’s not fair to give him that title since he’s just pretending—because I asked him to, okay. This is partly my idea—but Donghae really asked me to be his girlfriend – he’s a jerk, seeing someone else behind my back. Changmin’s a really nice guy, despite his non-talking and really handso—

She put a hand over her face and sighed, shaking her head. Her thoughts were running wild and away from her and it gave her a headache. She was only confusing herself; and it certainly doesn’t help her situation at all. Whether Donghae is the bad guy or Changmin is her ‘boyfriend’ or ‘partner-in-crime’ or whatever he was… it isn’t something she should stress over too much. It was no one’s fault after all; time and space led her to this moment and Yoona simply did have any control over it even if she wanted to.

She resumed walking, closing her eyes and rubbing her temple as her headache pounded. If she hadn’t closed her eyes for too long, Yoona wouldn’t have collided hard with a slim and equally distracted woman staring down solemnly at the floor. “Ow.” The woman said, rubbing her forehead while Yoona did the same and blinked in confusion. “I’m sorry—I wasn’t looking at where I was going.”

Yoona shook her head, waving her free hand in front of her and smiling sheepishly. She bowed modestly in apology. “No, it was my fault too. I wasn’t looking either and I’ve got a harder skull. I’m sure I did more damage to you than you to me.”

“Please, you don’t have to apologize. It’s only a red spot, it’ll fade in an hour or so.” She said, pointing at her forehead and laughing (the sound was melodious and slightly high-pitched). Yoona grinned guiltily and straightened her posture. The woman was dressed fashionably (probably all designer brands, she guessed), with a crème white blouse, skinny jeans and black silk flats. Her hair was light brown and tumbled down her shoulders in waves, and when she smiled Yoona felt a sense of familiarity. “I’m lost, to be honest. It’s been a while since I’ve been in a hospital in Korea and I’ve forgotten where the cafeteria is.”

“Oh? The main cafeteria is in the ground floor, behind the garden. There’s also a small cafeteria in this floor across the bridge,” Yoona replied, pointing at a two-door entrance behind her, “but I’m afraid the food here isn’t very… how shall I say this? Savory?”

The woman laughed again, wrinkling her nose. “I was only hoping to get a good hot cup of coffee while waiting for my mother’s appointment to finish but…” she shrugged, smiling and shook her head, “I’m afraid I’ll lose my appetite if I eat hospital food, let alone, drinks now.”

“Actually, there’s a very good café just beside the hospital. I was planning on going there after visiting a friend of mine but I can always go later. Besides, I feel sorry for causing you physical harm.” Yoona smiled, holding out her hand in greeting, “My name is Im Yoona. Why don’t we have some coffee and pass the time?”

The woman nodded, smiling brilliantly as she brought her own hand out to shake hers. “My name is Jung Sooyeon, but you can call me Jessica.”

She frequented this particular establishment because of Eunhyuk (he had his hair cut regularly, and often got ready for their dates there). So when the clerk saw them walk in, she recognized her immediately and were whisked into a corner not a moment later with Changmin sitting uncomfortably in a chair and waiting for the hair stylist to cut. Hyoyeon smirked at him and took a seat beside his chair, flipping through a magazine she found wedged between the mirror and wall. He looked nervous and annoyed all at the same time thinking about the prospect of cutting his hair.

“Relax, Broody. They’re not going to cut your ear off, I promise. You’ve already decided to disregard your ability to speak; we don’t need for you to lose your sense of hearing too.” She said while eyeing the piece of jewelry photographed on the page of the magazine. She raised an eyebrow when he grunted in response and rolled his eyes. He had a pen out and was writing a message – his hand movements faster that she’s ever seen anyone write before. She vaguely wished she had the same ability so she wouldn’t have to ask Yoona to copy her notes all the time.

/Let’s make this quick. I have to be home before Yuri talks Minho and the customers half to death at the Music Store./ It said, the white background of his board glaring back at her as she read his message.

“Aww, come on! She won’t bore your customers to death! If you hadn’t noticed, your sister’s hot and I bet that you’ll get more people in your store if you had her around more often.” Hyoyeon replied, wiggling her eyebrows.

Changmin heaved a resigned sigh and shook his head. /I know how attractive she is, Hyoyeon but I really didn’t need to hear it from you. Minho’s already told me too many times and it only gives me headaches./

“Dude, she’s eighteen. She’s allowed to have more than one boyfriend in a lifetime you know.”

/She’s still a child./

“Wow… Yoona’s right. You look all mean and tough on the outside but you’re really just a big softie, aren’t you?” Hyoyeon said; her eyes wide in mock surprise. “You know, Yoona really likes nice guys. If you keep this up, I’m sure she’ll like you too.”

The tips of his ears immediately flared red although his face stayed serious; his eyes piercing through hers from the mirror in annoyance or trepidation (Maybe both, she thought and smirking). Hyoyeon grinned at his reflection and made a ‘tsk, tsk’ sound as she put down her magazine. “Don’t worry, Changmin. I know how to keep a secret.” She winked at him and laughed out loud when he rolled his eyes. She pulled one of his ears. “Dude, you’re totally blushing! Look at your ears!”

Changmin swatted her hand away, tilting his head the other way. He glared at her obvious enjoyment at torturing him and quickly wrote another message. /Please stop harassing me./

“Oh but I enjoy it,” she argued, her tone light and mischievous as he rolled his eyes again.

This is going to be a long day, Changmin thought and took in a deep breath. He stared at himself in the mirror and wondered why he had to go through this crazy person’s need to makeover an innocent bystander. Granted, the long hair was getting on his nerves but he didn’t care to have it cut, let alone, styled. Why did he have to go through this? Because she said it would look better, his mind supplied, because Yoona thinks it will look good on you. That’s why you’re here at the mercy of her best friend. Y