“Hey team, thanks for coming to today’s meeting. So, Yeon Ah and I submitted copies of our plans for the dance and haunted house last week and today we got an ‘OK’ from the principal to start promoting and selling tickets. We’ve been granted a generous amount of $3000 from our Parent Advisory Council. It’s more than what we have estimated, so we shouldn’t be going over budget,” Young Won motioned for Yeon Ah to speak. She stepped forward.

                “Since today is Monday, we only have about 2 and a half weeks left. This week, we’ll focus on getting all the supplies for promotions. So, all the banners need to be painted, and all the flyers and tickets need to be printed. I’ll be helping out with the posters and Dong Rim will help with the printing. I guess we’ll start tomorrow after school. Is that okay with everybody?” Nobody objected. “So it’s settled. Please meet in the Art room tomorrow right after school.”

                “Could the Sponsor team please stay behind for a bit, please?” Everybody filed out of the room except for the 4 students. They stood in front of Young Won. “So, we have 4 awards for the dance. That means we need you guys to find 4 sponsors who would be willing to provide prizes. Since there are 4 of you, how about you each find one prize. It can be anything, gift cards, goodie baskets, soaps. Anything. Just make sure we clear it one week before the dance.” The 4 students nodded and left the room.

                “Well, so far, so good.”

                “Yea. I’d love to stay and discuss more, but I’ve got a schedule right now,” Young Won waved and ran out of the classroom. Yeon Ah gathered her things and scanned the room for any stray garbage before exiting the room. She closed the door and turned around to find herself face to face with L.Joe.

                “YAH! What the hell!” she brought down her raised fist.

                “Were you really going to hit me?” he stared wide eyed at her white knuckles.

                “If I did, you deserved it. Anyway, why are you here, Byung Hun?” she started walking away. He jogged after her.

                “Well, since we start posters tomorrow, want to go out today?”

                “Sorry, I’ve got work,” she quickened her pace and checked her watch. Her shift started soon and if she didn’t leave, she would be late.

                “At the candy store? Can I come with you? I’m craving some candy,” he gave her his best puppy-dog eyes. She strapped her things to her bike, completely unaffected by his stare.

                “You’ve got a Manager. Ask him to drive you.”

                “He’s not here today. Take me with you!” he jumped onto the back of her bike and held onto the seat. Yeon Ah glared at him, but then checked to watch. She was going to be late if she continued arguing with him.

                “Fine! Wear this, and hold on tight,” she tossed an extra helmet at him and pulled her own on. Turning on the bike, she put up the kickstand and raced off. L.Joe held onto the seat for dear life. Yeon Ah didn’t want to be late, so she sped through traffic and got to the store in record time. With only 5 minutes to spare, she burst through the front door, rattling the chimes. “Hello, Mrs. Lee. How was business today?” she scurried into the back room and put her things into the staff room and changed into some jeans and a long sleeved t-shirt. She came back and Mrs. Lee looked up from tying some candy bags.

                “Oh, business was good today. We had a rush of elementary kids come in on a fieldtrip, so lunch was busy. How about you? How’s school?”

                “It’s good. Stressful, but bearable,” Yeon Ah smiled and helped tie bags with Mrs. Lee. The chimes of the front door rang and Yeon Ah bowed and greeted the customer. “Hello, and welcome to Candy Paradise.” Her eye twitched when she saw who it was. The pink headed boy headed straight for the counter.

                “Hello, Auntie. My name is L.Joe. I’m one of Yeon Ah noona’s friends,” he bowed to Mrs. Lee.

                “Ah, hello. Can I help you with anything?”

                “Well, I have a huge favour to ask of you. You see, Yeon Ah noona is in charge of the Halloween dance and haunted house this year, which is in two weeks. I was hoping she could help me with some stuff today. Do you mind?” Yeon Ah glared at L.Joe. ‘What the heck is this kid thinking? Does he really want to die? Actually, I don’t have to worry, Mrs. Lee would never agree to this.’ She smirked at him and continued tying bags.

              “You’re in charge of the Halloween dance? How come you didn’t tell me? Of course I’ll let her go with you, my dear! You know what, how about you take the next 2 weeks off, Yeon Ah. You’re going to be really busy with this dance and haunted house, working here is just going to tire you out. Take it as your paid holiday! Now out you go! I don’t want to see you here for the next 2 weeks!” Mrs. Lee grabbed Yeon Ah’s things from the staff room and shooed her out of the store. “Have fun with this handsome, young gentleman.” Mrs. Lee quickly closed the door. ‘What the heck?’ Yeon Ah stared in disbelief at L.Joe, who was avoiding eye contact at all costs.

                “For the love of...…Do you know what you just did? Now I’m not allowed to work for the next two weeks! What were you thinking?” she stormed off to her parked bike. L.Joe skipped after her.

                “Since you’re not busy now, let’s go to the mall! I need to find a good costume for the dance,” he climbed onto her bike, completely oblivious of the anger building up in her. She tried to pry him off the seat, but he wouldn’t budge.

                “Go with your band members, Teen Top, or whatever they’re called,” she crossed her arms and breathed out in frustration. She was pissed. The one and only place she enjoyed going to was now off limits for the next two weeks and it was L.Joe’s fault.

                “Hey! You remembered my group name.”

                “I tend to remember some useless information here and there,” she snapped at him.

                “What are you implying?!” L.Joe gasped and pretended to hold his chest in pain. “Anyway, come to the mall with me! I don’t want to go alone and I need your help. I’m not going to get off the bike until you agree to come with me.” He hung onto the seat for dear life. Yeon Ah rolled her eyes and checked her watch. Since it wasn’t even 5:30 and L.Joe was acting like a stubborn brat child, she had no choice but to go with him.

                “Fine, I’ll go. Do you have a disguise, Pinky? I don’t want to be attacked by rampant fangirls,” she gave him an extra helmet and started the bike.

--

                The roar of Yeon Ah’s bike engine echoed through the underground parking lot as she drove around looking for a good place to park. She found a secluded parking spot and drove in. L.Joe hopped off and pulled out a toque and a scarf from his bag. Scanning the area thoroughly, he made sure there was nobody around before he quickly pulled off his helmet and shoved on the toque and haphazardly wrapped the scarf around his neck. Yeon Ah locked up the helmets and secured her bike and turned around to see L.Joe in his awkward disguise.

                “People will think you’re crazy for wearing a scarf in the mall,” Yeon Ah walked up to him and pulled the toque down and tucked away some stray hairs. L.Joe blinked in surprise at her actions. She continued to fix his scarf so that it comfortably covered the bottom half of his face, only showing his eyes. She stood back and double checked his attire before nodding once and walking towards the mall entrance.

                “It is mid-October now, so people won’t think it’s weird. See, look, that couple are wearing scarves,” he pointed at a random pair.

                “Don’t point, it’s rude,” she swiped his arm down and bowed her head at the staring couple. “Okay, we’re here at the mall. Do whatever you want to do,” she tried to make a run for it, but L.Joe quickly linked his arm with hers and dragged her with him.

                “You’re not getting away that easily! We’re going to the costume store!” he pulled her along. Yeon Ah rolled her eyes and quickened her pace so that she fell in step with L.Joe. The costume store was PACKED. Yeon Ah felt like she had stepped into a warzone. Kids were running wild, parents were chasing their children, and the line ups for the dressing rooms s around the whole entire store. Frustrated customers were arguing with flustered sales associates and the store was buzzing with voices.

                “Are you sure you want to get a costume in THIS store, Byung Hun?” Yeon Ah tried to pull her arm away from him, but he held on tight. There were so many people around. No, there were a lot of high school teenage girls around. For the first in her life, Yeon Ah was scared. Although she did not follow k-pop trends, she knew that L.Joe’s group was pretty famous considering the numerous posters she saw hanging in the stores they had passed. With so many people around, the chances of getting caught with L.Joe soared through the roof.

                “Yes! This store has the best costumes! We HAVE to get one from here!” he stomped his feet and whined.

                “Well, I cherish my life and want to die of natural causes. It’s either we leave, or you let go of me,” she stared right at him. L.Joe noticed the hint of fear in her eyes and realized that there was a slight urgency in her voice. Arms still linked, he pulled her out of the congested store. Yeon Ah had never felt this relieved in her entire life. She breathed out a sigh of relief and he felt her relax under his grip.

                “I’m sorry, Noona. I wasn’t thinking and was acting selfish.”

                “It’s okay, Byung Hun. It’s in the past now. As long as we don’t have to go back there,” she smiled at him. He looked back guiltily.

                “If you’re going to continue beating yourself up, then I’m going to leave. I already told you that it’s old news,” she pulled her arm out of his and walked off. L.Joe stood there, stunned. He ran after her and grabbed her arm again.

                “I’m sorry, Noona! I’ll forget about it! Look, see, I’m smiling!” he grinned widely. Yeon Ah looked away angrily. He saw her taking laboured, angry breaths and her body was shaking in anger. L.Joe circled behind her and grabbed onto her other arm. He was surprised to see that she was smiling and giggling. She hadn’t turned away from him because she was angry, but because she was hiding her laughter. “NOONA! You’re so mean! I really thought you were angry at me!”

                “Hahaha! I would never hold a grudge for something so miniscule,” she continued to laugh. L.Joe softened at her laughter.

                “I’ve never seen you laugh this much before. Let alone hear you giggling.”

                “Well, I don’t laugh or giggle in front of just anybody,” she smiled and looked at the passing store. ‘Whoa, déjà vu moment there.’ L.Joe beamed from under his scarf. They walked around the mall and found a smaller costume store. It wasn’t as crowded as the other store and had many similar costumes.

                “Okay, we’re here! Let’s look at some costumes!” he pulled her around the store and randomly held out costumes. They spent almost two hours in the store, but left empty handed. L.Joe had tried on every single costume he had picked out, but none of them were to his liking. “I guess we’ll just have to keep looking.”

                “Hey, I’m tired, and we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow. Let’s just call it a day, okay?” Yeon Ah slumped down onto a random bench. L.Joe took a seat beside her and swung her arm back and forth.

                “I haven’t found a costume yet. We need to find one~~” he complained. Yeon Ah was too tired to hear anymore of his whining, so she grabbed his cheeks and held his head in place.

                “I’m tired. We’re not going anywhere else. End of discussion,” she dropped her hands from his face and leaned back. L.Joe sat back in his seat, flustered and embarrassed. ‘I’m glad I’m wearing a scarf,’ he thought and glanced over at her.

                “Okay, Noona. Since you’re tired, let’s go.” They left the mall and went to get Yeon Ah’s motorcycle. “Can you drop me off at the school? My Manager says he’ll pick me up from there.” Yeon Ah nodded and drove off. They got to the school at around 8 PM and saw L.Joe’s Manager already there. Yeon Ah pulled up next to the van and L.Joe scrambled off. “Thanks for coming with me today, even if we couldn’t find a costume. See you tomorrow!” He gave her his helmet and jumped into the van. He waved as hi manager drove off. ‘Silly boy,’ she smiled and shook her head. Strapping the helmet to her bike, she turned around and drove home.

--

                “I’m home!” Yeon Ah shut the door and took her shoes off.       

                “In the kitchen! We’re having barbeque tonight~ Go wash up, I’ll be done by the time you come down,” Daniel stuck his head out from the kitchen and nodded at his sister. Yeon Ah ran upstairs and took a quick shower. She pulled on some shorts and a sweater and went downstairs. Daniel brought up the plate of meat from the kitchen to the dining room table. “How was school and work?” Yeon Ah dropped her chopsticks, but quickly picked them back up. Daniel suspiciously looked at her.

                “Um, school was good. And I went to work, but then--”

                “Don’t tell me, you got fired?! What did you do?” it was his turn to drop his chopsticks. He stared lasers at her.

                “No, no! I did NOT get fired. Mrs. Lee gave me a 2 week paid holiday so that I could work on the school dance and haunted house. She only found out about it because Byung Hun wanted candy and I brought him to work. Lucky for me, he told her everything and she kicked me out. Now, I’m banned from the store for 2 weeks,” sarcasm dripped from her last two sentences and she grimaced at the nothing in particular. Relieved that she wasn’t fired, Daniel relaxed and picked up his chopsticks.

                “So if you didn’t work today, where have you been? I’ve been slaving and preparing the food for you and you didn’t bother coming home to help me?” he dramatically fanned himself and flipped the meat on the stone grill. Yeon Ah scrunched her nose at his exaggerated gestures.

                “Well, Byung Hun forced me to go shopping for a Halloween costume for him. It’s not like I could say no when he’s hanging off of my bike. And PUH-LEASE, I bet you bought everything premade and packaged at the market. Slaving over prep, my !” she playfully knocked his chopsticks out of the way and grabbed the piece of meat he was going for.

                “So, you went out with L.Joe?” he playfully wiggled his eyebrows at her.

                “He dragged me out. I was against it, but the kid is stubborn,” she shot him a glare.

                “Well, as long as there was no funny business.”

                “What makes you think there wasn’t any?” Yeon Ah smirked at Daniel who’s jaw dropped in shock.

                “YAH! WHAT HAPPENED BETWEEN YOU TWO?!”

                “Nothing.”

                “Liar! Something happened! Tell me!”

                “Maybe something happened, maybe something didn’t” Yeon Ah playfully suggested. At this point, Daniel was fuming and wouldn’t let go of the subject throughout dinner. ‘Siblings are there for us to tease, aren’t they?’ Yeon Ah giggled and continued provoking her brother.

Wuah~~~ I see all of you liked the Young Won-Yeon Ah moment XD Gah, for the lack of a better name, I used 'Pinky' for L.Joe. Oh, how original am I?.........Don't answer that........

So, I was pretty depressed when I read about Dari's enlistment on allkpop.......WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY. I love all the members of Dalmatian equally and it's just sad to see him leaving TT^TT BUT THIS DALMATE WILL WAIT FOR HIS RETURN!

COMMENT REPLIES:

@surethingfalling: LOL I actually jumped around my room for a minute when I saw your comment. Caps make me happy~~ and sentences that have the words 'love' and 'story' in them XD *am greedy*

@winterflowr: hahaha, although I cannot picture him as a diva, I'm sure it'd be pretty epic LOL

@kmn007: artificial colouring....yummy....XP *ijoke* I totally pictured diva Key....LOL trust me, I'm an oddball! We can be weird buddies XD

@MinniePancakes: don't worry, I'm a notorious spazzer! I, too, freak out when I read character interactions in other stories XD

ANYWAY, hope y'all enjoy this chapter! And hopefully I don't get stoned for the L.Joe-Yeon Ah pairing....*ducks away from rocks disguised as tomatoes*

See you in the next Chapter!

-greenninjapanda GNP-