KaHee’s eyes were quick to narrow once she spotted the girl. Quickly, KaHee grabbed her arm, as RaeIn had been excitedly walking towards DooJoon in the studio. RaeIn had been oblivious towards KaHee’s mood-change. That is, before she saw the murderous aura in her eye.

“What’s wrong?” RaeIn asked, very confused.

“That’s Shin SeKyung, isn’t it?” KaHee said more like a statement rather than a question. RaeIn followed KaHee’s gaze, and looked back at the maknae.

“Yeah, DooJoon-oppa told me that they would have another Buckaroo photo shoot.”

“So you knew about it?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Never mind, then.” KaHee said. “All right, I’ll just wait for you here.”

“Oh… okay,” RaeIn said, turning to walk closer to the shoot. DooJoon and SeKyung were still in the middle of taking pictures. As soon as DooJoon noticed RaeIn, his eyes lit up, and he grinned goofily to let RaeIn know that he was aware of her presence. After RaeIn waved, he returned to his charismatic and fierce expressions. SeKyung noticed that DooJoon seemed more energetic and quickly followed his gaze to find RaeIn, standing next to the photographer, holding a decorated box.

“All right, you two can take a break now,” the photographer yelled at his subjects, as he grabbed a cupcake that RaeIn offered to him from the box.

“RaeIn, what are you doing here?” DooJoon quickly ran over to RaeIn. Now they were both smiling widely at each other.

“I told you I would visit! And I brought these for you, Oppa,” RaeIn said, holding out the box to offer the goodies to him as well.

“Really? You didn’t have to go through all the trouble,” DooJoon said, giving RaeIn a big hug, almost causing her to drop the cupcakes.

“Of course I had to!” RaeIn said, as DooJoon released her so he could grab the box of cupcakes instead. “I really wanted to see you.” She brushed her hand against the pendant on her chest, and he nodded in acknowledgement.

“Still… You’re really awesome,” DooJoon said, to which RaeIn replied with a, “I know, I know. I guess I’m pretty great.” DooJoon grinned at the familiar words as he picked up one of the cupcakes. “Yes, you are. But since when did you bake? Or cook? Are you sure these are safe?” he teased.

“Yes, they are totally safe, and not to mention super delicious!” RaeIn said, puffing out her cheeks in faux-anger. “Besides,” she added, in a calmer tone. “KaHee helped me bake them.”

“Oh, did she?” DooJoon asked, taking a bite once he knew the cupcakes were safe to consume.

“Yeah, she did. Actually, she’s right over there,” RaeIn said, pointing towards KaHee who was still standing near the door. DooJoon enthusiastically waved at her while he chewed. She returned the wave with a dull lift of her hand.

“Is she okay?” DooJoon whispered, still waving. RaeIn looked back at KaHee then back at her boyfriend.

“I’m not really sure, but we’re going to head over to drop some cupcakes off for KiKwang also.”

“That should cheer her up,” DooJoon said laughing. “All right, well my break will be over soon, and I don’t want to keep you guys here late.” He attacked RaeIn with another tight hug. “Thank you again for visiting me. It means a lot to me.”

“Stop being such a girl,” RaeIn said teasingly as she wrapped her own arms around him.

“Say hi to KiKwang for me.”

“Of course, since you never see him and all.” DooJoon shot her a look for her sarcasm. “I’m just kidding.” RaeIn laughed, tightening her hug as an apology.

“Call me when you’re done with your radio thing so I can come over, okay?”

“Okay, I will. Bye, Oppa!”

——-

KaHee looked over at RaeIn, who was still in her love-high. They were sitting next to each other in the middle seats of their company van. They were now headed to KiKwang’s filming location.

“Unni,” KaHee called over to her, trying to snap her out of her daze.

“Hmm?” RaeIn replied, with one of the serenest expressions KaHee had ever seen on her leaders face. It almost made her gag especially since she knew that it was genuine.

“Unni! Didn’t you notice anything while we were at the shoot?”

“What are you talking about?”

“She was totally mad-dogging you.”

“Who was?”

“SeKyung!”

“What are you talking about?” RaeIn said again, almost forgetting that Shin SeKyung was at the photo shoot with DooJoon. “No she wasn’t.”

“Yeah, she was. I saw her give you a look!”

“But why would she do that?”

“I… don’t know.” KaHee replied.

“Exactly,” RaeIn said matter-of-factly. “Besides, we don’t even know each other. So she has no reason to give me any kind of look.” She looked up as the van slowed down. “Oh, we’re here!”

“Yeah, I guess so,” KaHee said, not at all swayed by RaeIn’s argument. However, she dropped the subject as she hopped out of the van.

——-

“Sorry to call you guys back here,” the director said, laughing sheepishly. “I don’t know what happened with those scenes we filmed, but we’ll have to re-film them. Thank you very much for being able to come in at such short notice.”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s not a problem at all, isn’t that right, JunHyung-oppa?” RaeIn said cheerfully. JunHyung, who was standing to her right, looked down at her, unamused. He had a full schedule that day, and all he wanted was to get filming done quickly so he wouldn’t fall behind. She laughed, awkwardly. She renewed her ambitious attempts at befriending JunHyung, since being angry and annoyed with him only sparked that argument with Doojoon – which she never wanted to happen again.

“Okay, well, let’s begin! We’ll be reshooting the dance scene. You guys still remember it right?”

“Yes, of course,” JunHyung replied, coolly.

Soon, everybody took their places and filming commenced. And after a couple takes, the re-filming ended.

“Good work, everyone! And thank you guys for coming back to film,” Director Jang praised the staff. “Hopefully nothing goes wrong this time.”

JunHyung and RaeIn stood next to each other as they packed up their belongings. RaeIn hesitantly looked over at JunHyung. “All right,” she thought. “Let’s try this one more time, and if he doesn’t agree, then that’s fine.”

“O-oppa,” RaeIn started, stuttering a bit.

“Yeah,” JunHyung replied as he slung his bag over his shoulder.

“I was wondering if you were free on Tuesday.”

“What’s going on that day?”

“It’s actually my birthday. I’m having a birthday party back at our dorm, and I wanted to invite you. But you don’t have to go if you don’t want to!” RaeIn quickly added the last sentence at the end. JunHyung stared at her silently for a while before answering.

“Well, I did have fun at JulSu’s and HyunSeung’s party. Yeah, I’ll go.” Then, he began to walk away. RaeIn, who had been expecting a full-on rejection, couldn’t believe her ears.

“Wait… Are you serious? You’ll go?” RaeIn called out after him. JunHyung stopped and turned around, actually looking back at her and making eye-contact.

“Yeah, I’m serious,” JunHyung said. A small smirk appeared on his face before he added, “I’ll be there.” Then, he walked away.

“Wait a sec,” RaeIn thought, stunned. “He said he’s going! And… he didn’t ignore me! What the heck is going on?” She contorted her face in confusion as she continued to pack her things. However, she was quick to shrug it all off as her thoughts wandered. “Oh, well. At least he’s being nice to me now.” She glanced at her watch and found that she had a lot of free time left, so she decided to visit DooJoon, since he had another photo shoot that day. I mean, she might as well, she thought, since she was in such a good mood now.

——-

“Oppa,” SeKyung said sweetly, tugging on the sleeve of DooJoon’s shirt. “Let’s go get lunch together.”

DooJoon checked his watch and found that it was already 4:00PM. “It’s already 4. Didn’t you eat yet?”

SeKyung shook her head, still holding onto his sleeve. Tilting her head, she added, “But you’ll at least come with me to keep me company, right?”

“Yeah, I guess so,” DooJoon complied. “Who else is coming?”

“No one, just you and me,” SeKyung replied nonchalantly.

“Ah,” DooJoon said, thinking out loud. “I don’t think I should then. RaeIn might not like it if it was just us two.”

“Oh, RaeIn-ssi? Are you guys really close? If I didn’t know any better, I might think the two of you were dating, Oppa.”

“Oh no,” DooJoon thought as he started to panic. “Ah, I messed up. Why did I say that? No one outside of the company is supposed to know, or else the media could find out. The president doesn’t even know…” He cleared his throat before speaking out loud: “Oh, no of course we’re not dating. We are very close, though.” That should hold her off, for now.

“Then there shouldn’t be a problem with just coming with me to get lunch since we’re friends, right?” SeKyung let go of DooJoon’s shirt and slipped her hand around his arm instead, smiling up at him.

“Y-yeah, of course we are,” DooJoon said hesitantly. “Well, all right then. I guess it wouldn’t hurt…”

The two headed to the food court within the facility. DooJoon picked a spot and waited for SeKyung to return with her food. She came back with a sandwich and a drink and took her seat in front of him.

“So, Oppa… I hear RaeIn-ssi and JunHyung-ssi are filming a commercial together.”

“Um, that’s right,” DooJoon replied.

“And it’s a chicken commercial, right?”

“Hey, that’s right. But how did you know?”

SeKyung daintily took a bite out of her sandwich. “I just heard about it somewhere. Anyway, I wouldn’t be surprised if they were getting close. Do you agree?”

“Who, RaeIn and JunHyung? No, I don’t think so.” DooJoon suddenly felt defensive.

“Really, you don’t? You know, we all got pretty close while filming for our chicken commercial a few months ago.”

“Mm… I guess so.” A sudden burst of jealousy instantly flooded DooJoon’s thoughts with visions of RaeIn and JunHyung during their filming. They did have to act like a couple, after all. However, based on what RaeIn had been telling him, he didn’t think that they would actually be getting closer with one another. Then again, he had never seen them during filming since he always had an overlapping schedule. Who knows what went on while he wasn’t there…

“Oppa… Oppa!” SeKyung called, trying to regain DooJoon’s attention.

“Mm,” he replied, still distracted by his thoughts.

“Oppa, I was just wondering if you were free on Tuesday. High Kick cast is having a party, and I wanted you to come with me. KiKwang will be there, too.” SeKyung was sipping on her drink now.

“Yeah,” DooJoon said, not paying attention. All he saw in his mind were the imaginary scenes of RaeIn and JunHyung together. “Yeah, of course I’ll go.”

“Great! I can’t wait,” SeKyung said as she continued to sip on her drink, with just a hint of a victory on her lips.

——-

“Annyeonghaseyo!” RaeIn said, bubbling as she greeting the photographer on the set of DooJoon’s photoshoot.

“Oh, annyeonghaseyo,” he replied, smiling at the unexpected guest. “Your cupcakes were delicious!”

“Thank you,” RaeIn beamed. Looking around, she asked, “Is DooJoon-oppa here?”

“Actually, he stepped out to grab a late lunch with SeKyung-ah,” the photographer replied. “He should be returning soon, though, if you want to wait for him.”

“Yes, I think I will,” RaeIn replied, sitting down in the chair he offered to her. She decided against calling or texting DooJoon because she wanted to surprise him. However, soon fifteen, then thirty, then forty-five minutes passed, and still DooJoon and SeKyung had not returned. She had been so happy that JunHyung finally accepted one of her invitations, yet now she felt quite disappointed that DooJoon still had yet to arrive. After the hour passed, the photographer, noticing that RaeIn was still there, approached her again.

“Ah, RaeIn-ssi, I’m sorry you have to wait. I don’t know what’s taking them so long. Do need anything while waiting?”

“Oh, no, I’m okay, thank you,” RaeIn replied, standing up to bow. “Actually, I think I’ll just leave now.”

“Are you sure?” the photographer asked hesitantly.

“Yes,” RaeIn said, trying her best to smile. “Thank you for allowing me to wait here for as long as I did. And I’m sorry for troubling you.”

“It’s no problem at all,” the photographer replied, watching as RaeIn walked out of the studio. Her bubbliness had completely disappeared.

This was also apparent when she entered the MAKIKO dorm.

“Hi, Unni,” JulSu called out from the couch. She was watching TV. However, as soon as she saw the dull look on RaeIn’s face, she switched the TV off. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” RaeIn said, glumly, as she walked past the living room towards her bedroom. KaHee had entered the room now, and she and JulSu exchanged glances before following RaeIn into her bedroom.

“Unni,” they both said, sitting on either side of RaeIn on her bed. “You better tell us what happened!”

“JunHyung said he’d go to my birthday party.”

“Isn’t… that a good thing?” JulSu asked.

“Yes. It was the first time he didn’t ignore me, so I was happy. Since I was happy, I wanted to visit DooJoon-oppa during his photoshoot today, but he wasn’t there.”

“Aww,” the maknae sympathized, patting the leader’s back. “That’s okay. Maybe he finished early.”

“No, they told me that he just on a break.”

“Do you know where he went?”

“He went for a late lunch with SeKyung-ssi.”

“Shin SeKyung,” KaHee spat out the name and her eyes raged like fire. “I don’t like her, especially when she’s around KiKwang.”

“Oh, right, they filmed together, too, right?” JulSu asked.

“Yeah, and remember the Dream Concert this year? I know we were pre-debut then, but I was still angry when DooJoon-oppa and KiKwang-oppa got jealous over her,” KaHee reminisced bitterly.

RaeIn cringed.

“And do you remember that Danbi episode DooJoon-oppa was in?” JulSu pitched in.

“Yeah, ‘Oh, SeKyung-ssi has a star in her eye~’” KaHee mocked.

Cringe.

“I’ll put a star in her eye,” KaHee continued. “A ninja star.”

“’Oh, I see a star on your hat~’” JulSu added, continuing the role play.

Cringe.

“Oh, I can make sure she sees more stars than that. Oh, RaeIn are you okay?” KaHee noticed that RaeIn had ended up in the fetal position on her bed.

“No,” RaeIn said bitterly.

“You know what you should do? (“No,” RaeIn said again.) They have another photo shoot on Monday, right? (“Yes.”) You should bring him more snacks,” JulSu suggested.

“Yeah?” ReaIn asked meekly, still in the fetal position, her head buried in her arms.

“Yes! You know, as a way to let her know that he’s off-limits. I know you guys are trying to keep your relationship a secret from the public, but at least this way she can realize that he is interested in you.”

“You’re right,” RaeIn said, slowly getting up.

“This time, bring him cookies!” Of course, JulSu had to mention cookies.

“Okay, okay,” RaeIn complied, a burst of motivation overwhelming every other conflicted emotion within her. “I’ll do my best!”

Before the trio knew it, it was Monday. JulSu and KaHee helped RaeIn in the kitchen, however since they had another schedule to attend, RaeIn had to visit DooJoon by herself. Cautiously, she entered the set. She instantly spotted DooJoon… and Sekyung. They looked like they were on their break. RaeIn was caught off guard when she suddenly made eye-contact with SeKyung, causing RaeIn to gulp nervously as she held onto her plate of cookies. RaeIn was about to start walking closer, when suddenly SeKyung flashed a grin before clinging onto DooJoon’s arm.

“Oppa~” RaeIn heard SeKyung as she called for DooJoon’s attention. RaeIn also saw that SeKyung was glancing back at her through the corners of her eyes while she pulled DooJoon away in the opposite direction. He had no idea that RaeIn was there, and that made her very angry. RaeIn dropped the plate of cookies in a huff and stormed out of the studio as soon as she saw SeKyung and DooJoon begin to converse, SeKyung’s arm still draped around DooJoon’s.

“What was that?” DooJoon asked, turning his attention towards the crashing sound behind him. He found that some of the staff was cleaning up broken pieces of glass and cookies from the floor.

“What was what, Oppa?” SeKyung asked, innocently. DooJoon looked around but noticed nothing else. Shrugging, he returned to his conversation with SeKyung.

“So you’re still coming with me to the party tomorrow, right, Oppa?” SeKyung had asked.

“Oh, right! I almost forgot,” DooJoon said laughing. “Yes, I’ll still go with you.”

——-

Meanwhile, RaeIn was climbing into the company van, slamming the door shut behind her and sitting down with crossed arms.

“Is something wrong?” the driver asked her.

“No, everything is perfectly fine,” RaeIn snapped. “I just need to get to my next schedule.”

“A-all right,” the driver said, hesitantly, not at all used to the angry side of this idol.

“That’s right, everything is perfectly fine,” RaeIn thought to herself, still huffing in anger. “KaHee is right, though; pfft, that SeKyung gets on my nerves! But I shouldn’t be getting too worked up about this. He’s my boyfriend, not hers. Besides… my birthday is tomorrow, and my party is tomorrow, and DooJoon and I are going to have a wonderful time together!”