"So Eun? Do you feel alright?"

So Eun found Daehyun waited by her door the next morning when she woke up. She was pleasantly pleased with his attention and he genuinely cared for her welfare. Or that was what she wanted to think.

Daehyun was still cold and emotionless, the same guy So Eun had met from the beginning. The only difference was that she was now attuned to his expressions and could sometimes figured out what he was feeling even though he didn't show it on his face. His actions showed it all.

And now he was concerned.

"Yeah I'm fine." So Eun beamed up at him, feeling energized. Daehyun nodded, his expression still bland but So Eun could see slight relief in his eyes. "School." he muttered simply, leading them both down the stairs.

So Eun followed behind him, gazing at his back view. She never noticed how tall Daehyun, or maybe he was tall compared to her. She wasn't very short, she wasn't very tall either. She was 1.65m so that put her in the tall girl group, but still, not very tall.

Daehyun was a good 12cm taller than her and she only came up to his nose. His shoulders seemed sturdy and broad even though Daehyun wasn't considered one of those muscled men with abs. The kind of shoulders So Eun liked, that gave her the sense of security.

They arrived at the dining room and both of them grabbed their toasts and gulped down glasses of milk.

Mrs Kim shook her head at the both of them. "Why did you two wake up so late if you know you're going to have your breakfast in such a rush?" she laughed in amusement.

Daehyun looked at So Eun pointedly. "She was late, not me."

So Eun pouted. "Hey I didn't make you wait for me! You could have eaten your breakfast first!" she harrumphed.

Daehyun cleared his throat and declared that he was going to school, grabbing his bag and bidding Mrs Kim goodbye. So Eun quickly gulped down the last mouthfuls of milk and rushed after him, shouting a bye to her mother.

Mrs Kim watched in amusement, smiling. "They seem to be getting closer." she murmured thoughtfully.

The two of them joined the rest of the BAP boys as they walked to school. Daehyun was quiet as usual, and So Eun suddenly noticed how she would always be aware of where Daehyun was even when they were walking in a group. Even when he didn't take part in the conversations, she would always be highly aware of his reactions to their words and her eyes would flit over to his face every once in a while.

She frowned to herself when she realized this. And the realization dawned with another fact that this behavior of hers hadn't only just begun. It had been there since the beginning.

Daehyun had captured her attention whether she wanted it or not, and even when she didn't like him much in the beginning, she thought of him more than necessary.

So Eun shook her head and hugged her arms. She couldn't right? She couldn't have fallen for him.

"Yah, are you on drugs?" Youngjae nudged her. "Why are you shaking your head all of a sudden?"

So Eun blinked and forced a smile. "Nothing just...a little confused." she mumbled. She glanced over at Daehyun who was watching So Eun and Youngjae curiously and met his eyes. He raised his brows questioningly and So Eun shook her head, pinking and looking away.

Youngjae caught her reaction with interest and chose not to comment. His lips twitched up in a little smirk and he grinned to himself. *Oooh, interesting..*

"Noona," Zelo asked, "Are you going to be playing scrabble with Daehyun hyung again today after school?" he asked innocently.

So Eun glanced at Daehyun once more and he frowned at her, shaking his head subtly. So Eun turned back to Zelo and reluctantly shook her head. "Nope. At least not today." she could almost see smoke coming out of Daehyun's ears from her answer. She knew she was being stubborn but meh.

"No more scrabble?" Himchan brightened. "Great! Then we can go out as a group again. Where do you want to go after school today?"

"I need to catch up on my homework." So Eun admitted. She had been abandoning her school work because of the search for Kim Sohyun. "I haven't completed the essay Teacher Shin wanted and it's due tomorrow."

"Oh right the essay!" Yongguk slapped his forehead. 'Thank goodness you mentioned it. I almost forgot!"

Jongup looked at So Eun curiously. "So Eun, you haven't done the essay? I thought you would have completed it the moment Teacher Shin assigned it to us. Even Zelo and I have completed it."

So Eun just shrugged, playing with the strings of her bag. "I've been busy." she muttered briefly.

Youngjae stared at her curiously, scratching his head. *The big question, with what? I'm seriously dying with curiosity about what's happening between you and Daehyun, Kim So Eun. But since I'm wiser beyond my years and everything, and I'm such a nice friend, I'm not going to ask.*

He observed how So Eun glanced at Daehyun again and quickly looked away, biting her lips.

*Anyone knows it's stupid to ask when two people haven't gotten together yet. Judging from Daehyun hyung's character, asking will only cause more awkwardness between them when I lay their feelings out in the open.*

"Noona are you feeling okay? Your face is really red." Zelo eyed So Eun, frowning.

So Eun's hands flew to her cheeks and she cleared in embarrassment. "Must be the heat. Don't worry, nothing's wrong." she subtly fanned her cheeks.

Zelo nodded, believing her. So Eun mentally scolded herself for her unneeded reaction when her hands brushed Daehyun's accidentally while they were walking towards the cafeteria. It was nothing, really.

The group had been walking too close because they were too many students and Daehyun had to move closer to her to let another guy pass. His hands accidentally brushed hers in the lightest of touches and it seemed he hadn't even noticed what had happened.

But the stupid So Eun had to react so dramatically to something so insignificant, it seemed like her body's reaction was out of her control. Annoying.

Since when did she turn into such a hopeless fangirl?

So Eun shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut. *Stop it So Eun. Remember Kim Sohyun? Daehyun loves her, not you. He LOVES her and for more than a thousand years. What makes you think you can rival her? Just because your name is similar to hers?*

She sighed softly as she took out her bento and ate her omurice. She was a smart girl, second in school. She wouldn't be so stupid to fall for a guy who already had someone he loved, right? That would be self inflicting pain, and not to mention immensely dumb.

She could have taken a liking to any one of the other 1000 boys at school, of which perhaps 800 of them were unattached. Why would she pick that one which already loved someone else? And more over, the one that couldn't die and couldn't age?

So Eun was a genius, she wouldn't do that.

So Eun bit her lip and nodded. Yes, she wasn't that stupid. Feeling more confident of herself, So Eun puffed out her chest more as she walked over to the dustbin to throw her trash. When there came a tap on her shoulder, she turned around with a bright smile, in hope of drowning out the uncertainty that was welling in the pits of her tummy.

"Uhm So Eun sshi?" A guy called Kim Minkyu smiled at her hesitantly.

So Eun blinked up at him in surprise, since they weren't very close. He had been her lab partner in her first year and he was quite a nice guy. They would have been closer friends if not for the fact that she already had her life full of troublesome boys, aka BAP.

"Yeah Minkyu sshi?" So Eun nodded to acknowledge his greeting. "Anything the matter?"

Minkyu looked around in, looking very uncertain and So Eun noticed a group of his friends standing at the side, pumping their fists in the air in encouragement. Minkyu looked back at So Eun and gave a visible swallow. "Uhm I just wanted to give you this." he passed her a box of chocolates.

So Eun accepted the chocolates politely and with some confusion. "Today isn't my birthday, Minkyu sshi." she laughed. "I think you got the date wrong."

"No it isn't that." Minkyu blushed. He was really quite a cute guy, rather dorky and shy. "Actually I...I like you." he ducked his head, not daring to look at her. "I've already liked you since our first year when we were lab partners but I didn't care confess because you already had the BAP boys by your side. But then it's already our last year of highschool and I decided to just tell you my feelings."

He rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't really expect you to accept my confession because I know I'm not very attractive, unlike your friends...but that doesn't mean I won't be happy if you do!" he quickly added. He reddened even more. "I must be embarrassing myself. I'm wasting your time, I'm sorry."

So Eun watched as he slowly turned, his face bright red.

Her gaze darted back to the BAP boys who were watching the scene in interest. Such cases happened before and So Eun had usually rejected the guy straight up and was firm with her answer. But just because it happened before didn't mean it was any less interesting to watch.

So Eun suddenly met Daehyun's fiery gaze and she felt her heart take a leap. She closed her eyes to compose herself and reminded herself of Kim Sohyun. Not Daehyun, anyone but Daehyun.

"Wait Minkyu sshi."

Daehyun froze when So Eun called out after her admirer. No way. No.

So Eun sidled up to Minkyu shyly and nodded. "I um...I can't say I accept your confession yet but I think we can try going out." she felt strange saying the words. "If you're okay with it."

"OF COURSE I AM!" Minkyu blurted in a hurry. He seemed embarrassed after wards but his smile was too large to be true. "Thank you for giving me the chance So Eun sshi! How about...tomorrow? After school? Wil you go on a date with me?"

"Yes." So Eun nodded.

"Thank you!" Minkyu beamed. "I'll pick you up after class. So uhm...see you then?"

"Yeah." So Eun smiled back. Minkyu beamed brighter and he waved, almost skipping back to his friends. So Eun collected her nerves as she walked back to the table with the most nonchalant expression she could conjure.

"Noona...you did not just accept that guy's confession." Zelo rubbed his eyes in wonder. "Did I hear or see anything wrong?"

"I did." So Eun laughed. "What's wrong?"

"But..." Himchan frowned. "You never accepted any confessions before. Why now? Do you like Kim Minkyu or something?"

"No." So Eun admitted. "But he's a nice guy. I don't mind trying." she shrugged. She sipped her orange juice and avoided Youngjae and Daehyun's piercing gazes.

Youngjae frowned at her, not understanding. Didn't he just see her blushing because of Daehyun that morning? What was his stupid best friend up to now?

Daehyun wasn't pleased with the new developments either. Although it was good that So Eun was dating someone else, which meant she couldn't fall for him, it still ticked him off. Especially that Kim Minkyu.

Daehyun hadn't even seen that guy before, humph. At least Jongup was quite popular, and Daehyun knew he could entrust So Eun in Jongup's hands because Jongup was a nice guy. This Kim Minkyu, Daehyun knew nothing about him.

What if he was a serial killer or a kidnapper? HUH HUH?

Daehyun tried forcing down the emotional side of him and tried viewing things logically but the emotional side of him won, which happened quite often recently. He rubbed his temples and let out a silent growl.

No way was he going to let the date go unsupervised.