“You’re lying. I know you are.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t lie to me, Luhan.”

You never really anticipated ever having to take part in a conversation like this. Then again, most people wouldn’t. Here you were, on the brink of revealing possibly the biggest scandal ever to come to the hallyu scene, and somehow, the biggest worry you had on your mind was that this could have been avoided completely if you had just been honest.

Luhan asked you on a date around three months ago. You remember the day vividly, of course pushing small details aside. It was a bittersweet moment. Sweet in that one of your shining idols had noticed you and wanted to have coffee with you on a cold autumn night. Bitter because, even though Luhan didn’t know of it, you knew it was all a trick.

The question is:  who’s the real victim?

**

LUHAN POV

**

Usually after interviews, it isn’t uncommon for the members to discuss some of the answers given. Often enough, we discover new things about ourselves, and these were just opportunities for us to come clean about subjects that we normally wouldn’t talk about.

“I can’t believe you said that.” Kris shook his head with a slight chuckle. “You realize our fanboard is going to be blown up with marriage proposals to you, right?”

Lay nodded my way. “Who knew that Exo-M’s little Lulu would actually date a fan? Pretty scandalous if you ask me.”

I sat in the back of the van with Xiumin who had fallen asleep no sooner than he had taken his place, a sly grin hidden beneath the collar of my jacket.

“It’s called fan service for a reason, you guys.” I smirked to myself.

“You mean you lied?” Tao turned around to face me.

“Of course.” I sat up straight. “As if I’d actually give any time to some fan who probably only wants me because of what she sees on the television. They don’t know anything. They don’t know who we are.”

“Isn’t that the point of getting to know the girl?” Chen glared towards me. He didn’t approve about this one bit, and he didn’t attempt to hide his disappointment in the slightest. “This is a bad idea, I can just feel it.”

“Like I said. It was fan service. It’s not like it will actually happen.”

The tense conversation boiled the air around us, making the ride back to the SM building very awkward and eerily quiet. No one wanted to stir up the subject again and at the risk of permanently damaging my relationship with Chen, I managed not to say anything else about it.

The moment we arrived at the building, Chen stormed out, leaving the rest of us to trail after him at our own pace. Kris shot me a look of disapproval at our behavior, but there really wasn’t anything any of us could do.

**

YOUR POV

**

“Hi, I’m looking for Kim Jongdae. Is he here?” You stood at the front desk, completely puzzled as to how to get around the SM building. Jongdae mentioned something about it being huge, but you’d never imagined that by just walking through the front door, one could already feel the sense of being lost.

“I’m sorry, Miss. If you are a fan, please wait outside.”

“Oh, no. I’m _______, Kim Jongdae’s sister. Do you know where I could find him by any chance?”

The secretary apologized for the mistake and explained that Exo-M had only managed to finish their schedule a few minutes ago and should be back in the building soon. She motioned for you to sit in the waiting room.

Your leg was suddenly disturbed by your phone, vibrating within your pocket. Jongdae only texted you when he was frustrated. Any other time, he’d call just to check up on your or to let you know you were okay.

”’Play along, okay?’” You read out loud, casually looking around the room for any sign of your Oppa. A second message arrived not two seconds later.

Keep your phone by your ear and be calm with what you’re about to hear. I promise I’ll make it up to you later. Love you. - Jongdae

You didn’t know whether to completely ignore what your brother was rambling on about or if you should just trust him. Unfortunately, you had no time to think as your phone began to ring, a phone call from Jongdae.

You lifted the phone to your ear, preparing yourself to be shocked by anything. But nothing, absolutely nothing could have kept your surprise away from hearing what was going on in Exo’s practice room.

**

LUHAN POV

**

“Why are you making such a big deal out of this!” I yelled back at Chen who insisted shoving me every time he was near me. We hadn’t gotten ten minutes into rehearsal before he started purposely making mistakes, mistakes that involved stepping on my foot or tripping me.

Chen just stood there with a brooding smirk, his hands in his pockets. The other members were silent, not wanting to worsen the situation by butting in. Even Kris didn’t know what to say, and if anything, I wanted his help more than ever.

“It’s not a big deal, just let it go.” I gritted through my teeth. “I swear, if you don’t—”

“Oh, wow, little Lulu is threatening me?” Chen gasped. “Why don’t you go on acting all innocent and prove to your ‘fans’ that you really would date one of them. Go on.”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me. You told the media you would date a fan, and whether you believe me or not, a lot of those fans might actually venture in believing you. Do yourself a favor and prove yourself to them.”

I searched his face for a bluff, Chen wasn’t kidding. He wanted me to prove that my lie wasn’t actually a lie at all. He wanted me to actually find a fan and date her just to make my case to the media. He just stared at me, waiting for my response to his challenge.

“You’ll regret this.”

**

CHEN POV

**

Watching Luhan slam the door of the practice room was more than satisfying. And knowing that he was able to crack under so little pressure worked to my advantage. I knew somehow that this wouldn’t turn out well, but I had to prove something to him. You can’t just toy with the emotions of people who give their hearts to you so willingly. That’s just merciless.

“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?” Kris sighed. “I mean, you’re putting your sister in a bit of a position, don’t you think?”

I stared at my phone, and the wallpaper of me and ________ just smiled back at me. “I have faith in her. She’s a good kid, but she knows how to act. And I don’t think she’s aware of it, but she can manipulate people easily.”

“But what about Luhan? You don’t think he’ll hurt her?” Tao chimed in.

“Luhan is too competitive to let this slide. We’ll just see how this all turns out.”

Lay just shook his head. “You are so lucky Luhan was sick the day _______ visited us during rehearsal. As far as he knows, she’s just another fan.”

I couldn’t help but smile.

“Exactly.”

**

YOUR POV

**

After a loud crash, which you assumed was the door to their practice room, Jongdae abruptly hung up the call, leaving you speechless in the waiting room. You stared at your phone, expecting another explanation text from Jongdae but nothing came.

There was no time. Even though you were given so little information, you had a hunch of what was about to happen, and you knew what your brother wanted you to do. This was all a matter of timing and being able to read your target’s actions, and lucky for you, you were good at paying attention to detail.

As if on cue, Luhan walked out of one of the elevators and approached you.

The idol walked to the secretary nonchalantly, probably asking who you were. The secretary’s eyes flashed towards you, and you knew you had to silence her.

“Don’t say anything.” You mouthed silently, holding your finger to your lips.

She must have understood. Luhan thanked her for whatever information she gave him and turned back to face you.

“Hi.” He smiled.

“Hi.” You bowed.

“I was just wondering,” he rubbed the back of his neck to make the situation seem casual. “Do you want to get some coffee with me? My rehearsal just ended, and, uh, I couldn’t help but notice you looked a little bored.”

And there’s the bait.

You lowered your head down, shyly.

“Sure.”