Chapter Twenty

“Ow, that’s hot!”

“Of course it’s hot; it’s a curling iron, Smart One.” Sooyoung rolled her eyes and resumed fixing up Sunny’s hair. She took a piece of hair, wrapped it around the curling iron and held it there, counting the seconds in her head.

“Now hush up and let me do my work!”

This time, it was Sunny’s turn to roll her eyes. She tried to stay as still as possible so she wouldn’t disturb Sooyoung’s work. “Hey, I still don’t get why I have to get dressed up and look all fancy just to meet Taeyeon.”

The brunette shikshin froze and almost dropped the hot iron on Sunny’s head. Sunny gasped, shrieked, and moved out of the way quickly, clutching her chest in terror. She glared pointedly at the taller member. “Sooyoung!”

“Eh...sorry,” Sooyoung smiled apologetically. “Nice reflexes.”

Sunny could only chuckle. “Yeah, it saved my life.”

Sooyoung mumbled incoherent nothings. Naturally, it would be a difficult task, fooling the petite girl. Sunny was quick-witted, always on her toes, and one of the cleverest people she knew. Sooyoung made some facial expressions to herself and exhaled slowly, readying herself to lie.

“Let’s finish.” she picked up the curling iron and motioned for Sunny to come back in front of the mirror.

Sunny reluctantly retreated to her previous position. She glanced at her reflection in the mirror and after a few moments, began pouting. “Hey, you didn’t answer me.”

“You asked a question?” Sooyoung asked casually, hoping this nonchalance would be enough to shake Sunny off.

“Yes, I did,” Sunny said stubbornly. “Why am I dressed up?”

“Err...well...” Sooyoung stammered, putting the curling iron down. “Um...”

“Sooyoung?” Sunny raised an eyebrow suspiciously at the girl.

Sooyoung opened to respond, but was saved when her cell phone’s loud vibrate interrupted the pair. She smiled victoriously and stepped out of the bathroom. “I have to take this!”

“Who is it?” Sunny asked curiously, trying to peek at the phone.

“My mom!” Sooyoung declared loudly, standing on her tiptoes and holding the phone high above Sunny’s head, far out of the short girl’s reach.

“Why are you so tall?” Sunny complained, jumping and grabbing, even though it was a useless effort.

“Why are you so short?” Sooyoung retaliated, swooping out of the room. “I’ll be right back--don’t go anywhere!”

“Yeah, sure.” Sunny mumbled as Sooyoung shut the door behind her.

---

Sooyoung let out the world’s biggest sigh of relief and flipped open her phone, pressing her ear against it. “Yoboseyo?” she answered, walking down the hallway so Sunny wouldn’t catch any parts of the conversation. Sunny was already skeptical of the whole thing, and overhearing Sooyoung would just confirm her suspicions.

“Sooyoungie?” Taeyeon’s voice rang through the speaker, sounding muffled.

“Yeah, where are you?” Sooyoung hissed, keeping her voice low. “Sunny’s getting suspicious.”

“I’m getting everything all set up.” the leader responded eventually.

Sooyoung cocked an eyebrow curiously, hearing strange noises and sounds in the background. “What are you even up to?”

“Stuff,” Taeyeon replied casually. “Just trust me; this plan is foolproof! And if it doesn’t get those two idiots together, then everything has gone to waste.”

“...Yeah, I still have no clue what you’re talking about, but you’re the leader.” Sooyoung let out a sigh and shrugged, heading back towards the bathroom.

“Take Sunny to the park in like ten minutes, okay? That should be enough time for Sungmin-oppa to get here.”

Sooyoung gaped at the bathroom door, which was wide open. The lights were turned off, and Sunny was nowhere in sight. She rushed into the bathroom and flipped the lights on. The curling iron, make-up, and other cosmetics were all neatly stored away in their proper drawers.

“Sooyoung?” Taeyeon called frantically. “Sooyoung?” she tried again.

“Taeyeon...we have a problem.” Sooyoung said, short and crisp, closing the bathroom door behind her as she began running around the dorm, checking rooms and opening and closing doors.

“What’s with the running?” Yoona asked from the living room, as Sooyoung zoomed by rapidly.

“SUNNY!” Sooyoung called at the top of her lungs. “LEE SOONKYU!”

“Sooyoung, hey!” Taeyeon shouted through the phone. “What happened?”

“She’s gone.” Sooyoung said, out of breath.

“Gone? Where?” Taeyeon cried desperately.

“Probably to the park to meet you,” Sooyoung said, after regaining her breath. She plopped down on to the couch next to Yoona and groaned. “I didn’t even finish her hair! There was one part not even curled!”

Yoona laughed half-heartedly and patted Sooyoung on the shoulder, who was currently into a pillow.

“She’ll be fine, unnie.” Yoona said.

“But her hair!” Sooyoung whined.

“Okay, okay, I gotta go now. Bye.”

Click.

Sooyoung frowned at her phone, holding it up to her face to see that the call had ended. “Taeyeon hung up.”

“She’s probably up to something.” Yoona shrugged, getting up from the couch. “I’m gonna go take a nap.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Sooyoung’s eyes widened immensely and she shook Yoona by the shoulders. “You never take naps!”

“I’m tired.” Yoona sighed, faking a yawn.

Unconvinced, Sooyoung inspected the younger member’s face. Her eyes were still alert and bright--definitely not a sign of exhaustion. Sooyoung frowned deeply; Yoona, for some odd reason, looked unusually...depressed. Yoona was normally a positive, upbeat person with a cheerful personality. She was a choding, after all.

Looking at Yoona up close for the first time in a while, Sooyoung knew it at once. The girl was clearly unhappy about more than a few things. She didn’t want to pry into Yoona’s problems, though. Instead, she put on a smile and dropped her arms back to her sides slowly.

“Go get some sleep then, Yoona.”

Yoona smiled, and Sooyoung could tell this time that it was forced. “I will, thanks, unnie.”

Sooyoung watched Yoona retreat to the bedroom she shared with Yuri. She pursed her lips and headed to the kitchen in search of a snack. Food always helped her relax.

---

“Are you even allowed to be touching Eunhyuk’s car?” Sungmin questioned, looking around at the interior of the Audi.

“I’m just borrowing it for an hour or two.” Leeteuk said dismissively, flooring it to pass the yellow light. The car whizzed under it in the nick of time and Sungmin glanced back to see the line of cars stopping at the traffic light.

“Come on, Eunhyuk doesn’t even let Donghae touch his baby.” Sungmin rolled his eyes, using Eunhyuk’s lame nickname for the car.

“Well, I’m the leader, doesn’t that give me privileges?”

“Whatever you say, hyung...” Sungmin mumbled, giving up.

Leeteuk swerved dangerously around other cars and turned down the streets so quickly that Sungmin barely had time to breathe. Cars honked their horns, unaware of the passengers inside the speedy vehicle. The roads had become noisy and Sungmin rolled the window down cautiously, on the lookout for any pursuing policemen.

“Sorry!” Leeteuk yelled to the other drivers, despite the fact that no one would hear him.

“Hyung, stop driving so fast!” Sungmin cried, now clutching the back of the leather seats for dear life. “What if we get a ticket?”

“I’ve never gotten a ticket ever, okay?” Leeteuk said confidently, waving off his dongsaeng’s worries.

“That doesn’t mean anything.” Sungmin huffed, as Leeteuk ceased driving like an escaped criminal. They were driving at the normal speed limit again, and Sungmin watched the streetlamps fall behind them as they neared the park.

“I was driving fast because Sunny ditched Sooyoung and headed to the park.” Leeteuk explained quickly, pulling into the parking lot of a suave and chic restaurant. He pulled the keys out of the ignition and the car’s low hum died down.

“She should be here any minute now.” Leeteuk glanced behind him and squinted into the darkness, as if that would aid him in spotting a small, petite girl.

“I still don’t know what I’m doing here.” Sungmin said bluntly, crawling out of the backseat and slamming the door.

Leeteuk came out a few seconds later and swiveled Sungmin around to face the restaurant. “Taeyeon’s in there. Just listen to everything she says.”

“Do I have a choice?” Sungmin drawled, rolling his eyes slightly.

Leeteuk frowned and narrowed his eyebrows, his eyes going towards Sungmin’s hair. He his fingers and began fixing Sungmin’s hair on an instinct.

“Hyung, that’s gross!” Sungmin exclaimed in disgust, swatting the leader’s prying hands away.

“Your hair’s sticking up over here!”

“Why do you have to use your spit?”

“Fine, I’ll stop.” Leeteuk huffed, folding his arms. “Alright, get in there.” he gave a rather hard shove to Sungmin, who stumbled and caught himself before he fell on the asphalt.

Sungmin took a deep breath and steeled his nerves, tugging on his gray jacket anxiously. He took one step and then walked the few more paces to the front door. He grabbed hold of the shiny golden handle and yanked it backwards. The door opened smoothly and cold air overtook him immediately.

“Get in, get in!” an impatient voice insisted.

Sungmin blinked and his eyes adjusted to the bright lights after a few seconds. “T-Taeyeon-ah?”

“Yes, yes, it’s me! Stop standing there and let’s go!”

Still a bit dazed, Sungmin said, “Go? Where are we going?”

“Shut up and follow me.” Taeyeon ordered in an over-demanding tone, taking Sungmin’s arm.

---

Once Leeteuk pulled up to Super Junior’s dorm, he quickly, but carefully, parked Eunhyuk’s car in the correct spot, making it seem like it had never been touched. He slowly pulled the keys out of the ignition and walked out into the cool night air, slamming the door unconsciously. He tossed the keys in the air and caught them in his right hand casually and began sauntering into the building.

Walking into the building, he ran into a familiar-looking man. “I’m sorry.” Leeteuk apologized quickly, bowing his head.

“Oh, Leeteuk-hyung!”

Confused, Leeteuk snapped his head up and was looking into the eyes of Onew. “Onew-ah? What are you doing here?”

The younger leader smiled, a bit nervously. “Oh, hyung, I was looking for Taeyeon.”

“Taeyeon?” Leeteuk repeated, his left eyebrow shooting up in curiosity and suspicion.

Onew nodded slowly. “I went to SNSD’s dorm, but she wasn’t there, so I decided to come here because--”

“Why do you need Taeyeon?” Leeteuk interjected, his voice coming out harsher than intended. Onew shrunk back instantly, blinking rapidly, and Leeteuk’s facial expressions softened a bit. He repeated the question, in a calmer tone.

“W-Well,” Onew began with a stutter. He coughed and cleared his throat, starting over. “Taeyeon agreed to meet me tonight.”

“Meet you?” Leeteuk reiterated, scrunching his eyebrows together and frowning.

“If that’s okay with you,” Onew added quickly with a small smile.

Leeteuk chuckled and grinned. “Onew-ah, you don’t need my approval, okay? It’s just...Taeyeon’s kind of busy right now.”

“Oh, I get it.” Onew said, his face falling considerably. He still kept that slightly optimistic smile on his face. “Since you two are a couple and all--”

“She’s not busy with me.” Leeteuk said quickly, running his hands through his hair. “Look, how about you go back to your dorm and I’ll call her and tell her to meet you?”

“Ah, that’d be okay, I suppose.”

Chuckling again, Leeteuk ruffled Onew’s hair a bit. He pulled out his hand and waved Onew out of the dorm. “See ya around.”

“Same to you, hyung,” Onew smiled, nodding his head.

Pressing the number one button, Leeteuk held the phone to his ear, hearing it dialing Taeyeon. “Pick up.” he muttered, tapping his foot impatiently.

“What?” a frazzled voice answered, that Leeteuk recognized immediately to be Taeyeon.

“Taeyeon, are you...okay?” he asked carefully.

“Fine, couldn’t be better,” Taeyeon answered, breathing heavily. She sounded exhausted and completely worn out. Leeteuk had half a mind to borrow Eunhyuk’s car and assist her in whatever way he could, but she was stubborn, and she liked to be independent.

“Don’t lie.” Leeteuk snorted.

“Lying is convenient.” the leader of Super Junior imagined Taeyeon sticking her tongue out at him and smiled.

“Hey, I ran into Onew, and he mentioned something about meeting you...?”

“Onew?”

“Yeah, Onew,” Leeteuk rolled his eyes. “Lee Jinki, leader of SHINee, kind of awkward, loves chicken--”

“Oh god, I completely forgot about that.” Taeyeon mumbled quietly, cursing to herself. “Did he just leave?”

“I told him to head back to his dorm and that I’d call you.” Leeteuk said. He tossed Eunhyuk’s car keys in the air again and caught them swiftly. “Want me to take over at the restaurant?”

“Would you?” Taeyeon pleaded, aegyo tracing her voice.

“Aish, Kim Taeyeon, do you think I’ll do anything just because you use your aegyo?” Leeteuk joked with a laugh.

“I was not using aegyo.” Taeyeon denied stubbornly. “Now hurry up and get over here! Sunny just walked in!”

“I got it, stop your shouting.” Leeteuk grinned, heading back outside.

“Oh, and you owe me.”

“I owe you nothing, Jungsoo.” Taeyeon scoffed.

“Yah, Seo, would it kill you to look at Kyuhyun every now and then?” she shouted, obviously to Seohyun.

Leeteuk looked bewildered. “Are Seohyun and Kyuhyun there?”

“I’ll explain when you get here, Jungsoo.”

“Leeteuk.”

“I’m special, so I can call you Jungsoo.” Taeyeon finished, smiling victoriously on the other side of the phone.

“You,” Leeteuk grumbled, unable to stop from smiling that one-dimpled smile of his.

---

Unbeknownst to Leeteuk, Hyoyeon and Jessica were standing outside Super Junior’s dorm right as he was leaving the building. The two girls were having a whispered conversation. Hyoyeon’s plan was to bring Jessica and Donghae together, and she would succeed, she’d make sure of it.

Jessica was very anxious at the moment, and wanted nothing more than to leave and go home. Hyoyeon gave Jessica’s shoulders a few comforting squeezes, while the latter continued to protest about intruding.

“Nonsense,” Hyoyeon rolled her eyes. “We’re close with all of them.”

“We don’t have an excuse to be here.” Jessica persisted, refusing to enter.

“My boyfriend lives here, and what if I wanna visit him?” Hyoyeon shot Jessica an evil smirk.

“What if there were paparazzi that caught us coming in the building?” Jessica countered. “You won’t have a boyfriend for long, will you?”

“This dorm is very well-guarded, Sica.”

Jessica huffed, admitting defeat. “Kim Hyoyeon, I’m gonna kill you.”

“That’s refreshing.” Hyoyeon replied cheerfully, her hand inching towards the buzzer.

“Seriously, this is a bad idea.” Jessica hissed, shooting her friend a glare.

“My ideas are never bad, Sica. Trust me on this one.” Hyoyeon nodded firmly at the older girl and pressed the buzzer with in her index finger.

“Who is it?” a grumpy, irritated voice that could only belong to one person answered.

“Ah, Heechul-oppa, it’s Hyoyeon and Sica.” Hyoyeon said, smiling brightly.

The sound of feet shuffling to the front door could be heard, and moments later, an upbeat-looking Heechul was standing behind the now open door.

“Heechul-oppa, don’t you live on the 12th floor?” Hyoyeon pointed upwards.

“No one’s up there right now, so I came down here.” Heechul shrugged, opening the door wider for the girls. “It’s nice to see you girls.”

Hyoyeon just grinned and walked in like it was her own home. She slipped off her sneakers and placed them by the rest of the shoes. “Where’s Eunhyuk?”

“His room,” Heechul responded in a bored tone, closing the door behind Jessica once she entered.

Jessica smiled half-heartedly at him. “Hi, oppa.”

“Hey,” Heechul said back, giving her a tiny smile. Jessica made a move to step past him, but Heechul stopped her. “Wait.”

Jessica looked at him curiously, and suddenly, Heechul was looming over, brushing her bangs back into place. “Just fixing your bangs for you.” he said, chuckling.

“Thanks,” Jessica murmured, feeling heat spreading to her cheeks.

“You know, so you look okay for Donghae.” Heechul added coolly, leaving a dumbfounded Jessica by the door.

“...You know?” Jessica whispered to herself, her voice barely audible. She knew that Heechul was long gone now, probably in the living room, and of course, didn’t hear her question. Still, she was confused beyond belief.

“Sica, let’s go.” Hyoyeon said, popping back into the entrance, taking Jessica by the arm.

“He knows.” Jessica said quietly in a monotone, her voice now cold and hollow.

“What are you talking about?” Hyoyeon questioned, furrowing her eyebrows. The pair had reached Eunhyuk’s room. The door was closed, but they could hear chatter and conversation behind it.

“Nothing,” the petite brunette responded, tucking a loose piece of hair behind her ear.

Hyoyeon knocked three times on the door, each knock evenly spaced. “I wonder if he remembers that that’s our knock.” she wondered aloud, sighing.

“Is it Hyoyeon?” the unmistakable voice of Donghae said from inside.

“It has to be!” Eunhyuk cheered, clearly overjoyed.

The door was whipped open in seconds and Jessica’s eyes popped wide open as she witnessed Hyoyeon getting smothered by her boyfriend.

“Eunhyuk, stop! I can’t breathe!” Hyoyeon laughed, her words getting muffled, as her face was buried in Eunhyuk’s chest.

He released his tight grip on her and grinned, gums showing and all. Eunhyuk had his hands on Hyoyeon’s shoulders and both of them were leaning in, their faces growing closer and closer, the space between growing smaller and smaller.

“NO KISSING!” Donghae cried, covering his eyes like a child.

“You’re so immature, dude.” Eunhyuk huffed, rolling his eyes.

“Well, if you’re gonna kiss, don’t do it with us around.” Donghae said teasingly, chuckling.

“Please,” Jessica agreed, removing her hands from her face.

“You get a boyfriend then, and see what it’s like.” Hyoyeon grinned, pushing Jessica’s shoulder playfully.

“So what are you doing here?” Eunhyuk asked, with his eyes only on Hyoyeon. The two girls entered the surprisingly spotless and organized bedroom, both of them taking seats on the bed.

“I’m here too.” Jessica sighed, smiling.

“Sorry, Jessica,” Eunhyuk grinned at her, turning back to his girlfriend almost instantaneously.

“Hi, Sica.” Donghae greeted from his spot in Eunhyuk’s computer chair. He gave her a little wave and a small smile.

“Hi,” Jessica said, acknowledging him, but not meeting his eyes. She glanced at Eunhyuk and Hyoyeon, who were sitting in the corner and chatting animatedly, telling in great detail about what they’ve been doing for the past few hours. The couple were updating each other with every little thing that had went on.

Jessica knew at once what Kim Hyoyeon was up to. She was distracting Eunhyuk and talking to him, leaving Jessica and Donghae alone on purpose. Jessica would now have no choice but to speak with Donghae, since Hyoyeon was occupied at the moment. Sighing internally, she smiled at Donghae, trying to make it seem genuine.

“So how have you been?” Lame; Jessica almost slapped herself for asking such a pathetic question.

Donghae, on the other hand, didn’t seem to mind. He appeared to be happy that Jessica wasn’t completely ignoring him. “I’ve been okay, I guess; just really tired lately, what with...everything going on.”

Jessica nodded, swinging her feet that were currently dangling over the floor. “Yeah, same here.” she swallowed a large lump in and took a deep breath before starting. “Hey, Donghae...with you and Tiffany...”

He perked up a bit, his attention fully on Jessica. “What?”

“Do you really like her?”

Donghae rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and nervously, smiling uneasily at Jessica. “Ah, well, do I have to be completely honest?”

“Completely,” Jessica said, gaining a manner of total seriousness.

“Then...” Donghae trailed off, his eyes wandering around the room, as if the answer was written somewhere on the walls.

“Yes. I do.” he answered finally, looking straight at Jessica.

“Tiffany’s the only girl in your heart?” Jessica asked softly.

“The only,” Donghae said, positive in his answer, and positive about Tiffany.

“I was just wondering.” Jessica said after a few long moments of silence, her eyes casting downward.

---

Upon arriving at the restaurant, Leeteuk was shocked when he was almost tackled by the small and short Taeyeon, after stepping out of Eunhyuk’s car.

“Whoa, Taeyeon,” Leeteuk held the girl away at arm’s distance, smiling widely. “Okay, so what I need to do?”

“Not much,” Taeyeon said, catching her breath. “I already finished setting things up and I stalled Sunny at the entrance. Head in the back way, and just monitor them. Ah, Seohyun and Kyuhyun can tell you what do. So just listen to them--wait, scratch that; don’t listen to Kyuhyun.” she laughed.

“Why are they here again?” Leeteuk questioned curiously, as Taeyeon began her struggle of pulling Leeteuk around to the back of the establishment.

“Ask them, okay?” Taeyeon grunted. “You’re heavy.”

“I can walk, Taeyeon.” Leeteuk patted her head like she was a child and beamed at her playfully.

“Shut up.” Taeyeon pouted. “Just go, and hurry!”

“Wait, Taeyeon!” Leeteuk called after the girl, who was sprinting away at light-speed. “How are you gonna get to Onew?”

“I’ll take a bus!” Taeyeon hollered back, her light brown ponytail disappearing into the darkness.

“Why do you always make me worry for you?” Leeteuk muttered, jogging around to the backdoor. He yanked it open and poked his head in, seeing the kitchen staff hard at work.

“Annyeonghaseyo!” Leeteuk greeted, bowing a complete ninety degrees to the chefs and waiters.

The staff all greeted him back with smiles and turned back to their work. Not knowing what to do, Leeteuk decided on trying to find Seohyun and Kyuhyun. Not missing a beat, the two maknaes burst into the kitchen, colliding into Leeteuk.

Leeteuk raised an eyebrow at the maknaes’ attire. Kyuhyun looked dashing in a black suit and black dress pants with a red tie and black leather shoes. Seohyun seemed to be Kyuhyun’s counterpart in a fitting black spaghetti-strap dress, a red headband adorning her hair, and red heels to match.

“Sorry, hyung.” Kyuhyun apologized, while Seohyun kept apologizing profusely. He put a hand on her shoulder. “Seo, stop, he’s fine.”

“I was just apologizing.” Seohyun rolled her eyes at Kyuhyun, shrugging his hand off. Leeteuk was a bit shocked to see this side of Seohyun, but pushed the thought aside, since more important matters were at hand.

“Man, that’s four people I’ve ran into, just this night.” Leeteuk grinned at the two, trying to ease the tension.

“Interesting,” Kyuhyun said, not really caring what the leader was saying at all.

“Okay, what am I supposed to do?” Leeteuk inquired, jumping to the point. This was what he was here for, after all.

“Follow me.” Seohyun spoke up first, turning on her heel and pushing the kitchen door open. Leeteuk sped up his pace, walking out just in the nick of time, as the door swung back.

The dining room was extremely elaborate and sophisticated. The room mirrored a palace, with its gold walls, plush red carpeting, and a large, intricate crystalline chandelier hanging from the ceiling, right in the middle. The tables were all tables for two, with two black, comfortable-looking chairs facing each other, and a velvety red tablecloth on top of the table. The restaurant was packed, literally. Waiters and waitresses were whizzing by, taking orders, delivering orders, and mingling around with guests. Each table was taken, save one. Leeteuk guessed that it was the unoccupied one in the far corner and that it was reserved for Seohyun and Kyuhyun.

Taking a closer look, Leeteuk realized that the table directly in the center was taken by Sungmin, and that he was glancing around him anxiously. The leader looked at the maknaes, who took it as their cue to leave.

“Need anything, just call.” Kyuhyun whispered above the hubbub.

“Don’t ask him.” Seohyun said snappishly, heading back to her table without Kyuhyun.

“Kyuhyun-ah, what did you do to the poor girl?” Leeteuk sighed, his eyes never leaving the antsy Sungmin.

“I didn’t do anything to her.” Kyuhyun sighed, folding his arms. “I better go.”

“Be nice to her.” Leeteuk said in a strict tone.

“I’m always nice--”

Leeteuk gave his maknae a stern look.

“--To her,” Kyuhyun finished, stalking off.

Better go see what’s up with Sungmin... Leeteuk told himself, heading straight for the center table.

---

Siwon said slumped on the couch, watching the clock hanging over the TV tick by slowly. The second hand seemed to be slowing down as each second went by, and the minutes felt like years. He watched it; he heard the ticks and the tocks, growing slightly frustrated and irritated at his clock.

What was wrong with him?

“Siwon-hyung,”

Siwon sat straight up on the couch and walked to the front door, seeing the ever-so-familiar face of Kibum. He gave the man a small hug and smile. “Kibum-ah, good to see you.”

Kibum nodded, copping a seat on one of the kitchen stools by the island. “Yeah, so how are you?”

“Horrible.”

“Still?” Kibum hopped off the stool and opened the large refrigerator, rummaging around for a drink. There were sounds of bottles and cans clinking against each other, and eventually, Kibum pulled out a Coke. He cracked it open and took a long sip.

“I have alcohol, you know.” Siwon said, joining Kibum in the kitchen.

“Nah,” Kibum shrugged. “I’m not really in the mood. Eunhyuk convinced me to try Coke and I’m addicted now.” he smiled, his pearly white teeth whiter than ever.

Siwon chuckled, reaching in the refrigerator for his own carbonated drink. “I think I’ll have one.”

“Go for it.”

In only half a minute, Siwon and Kibum were sitting in the kitchen, drinking Coke. No words were exchanged, but Kibum’s company was more than Siwon could ask for during times like this.

“So Tiffany?” Kibum asked, interrupting the stillness and quietness.

“She’s like a little sister to me.” Siwon said, almost immediately.

He was absolutely sure about that since Day One, when they became close. He loved Tiffany, he always would. The love he loved her with was a brotherly kind of love though, not a romantic kind. Kibum had been giving Siwon hints lately that Tiffany had some sort of attraction to him. Since he heard about this, he had been feeling uneasy, but keeping it from the members and Tiffany, of course.

What was he supposed to do with this information? Keep it to himself? That was the most rational answer, in Siwon’s opinion. No one would have to know, and if no one knew, no one would get hurt, he thought. Another option was to talk to Tiffany one-on-one and bring up this topic, but Siwon knew that it would get awkward fast, and he didn’t want to hurt Tiffany’s fragile feelings, no matter what.

“You sure?” Kibum continued, wanting to verify this.

“I’ve never seen her as anything but that.” Siwon concluded, hesitating a bit in his answer.

“Now, Yoona?”

Yoona...this was a trickier subject to pursue. Im Yoona had always been Siwon’s close friend and partner, in a lot of things. They were both models, and modeled together often. Photoshoots brought the two closer, but as nothing more than friends. Besides modeling, both were also actors. Siwon could often recall times when Yoona sought after him for advice. He had been happy that she could rely on him for acting tips and always, words of encouragement. Both of them being the faces of Super Junior and SNSD, respectively added another thing that Siwon and Yoona had in common. Because of this, they clicked during their first meeting.

Clicked...as in, best friends,Siwon told himself.

“Hyung?” Kibum rumbled out in his low voice.

“Sorry,” Siwon said, shaking his head in an attempt to clear the muddied waters inside. “I was thinking.”

Kibum simply nodded, and did not prod any further. Siwon liked that about Kibum; that he didn’t ask many questions or try to persist in getting direct answers. He was the kind of person who understood through meaningful looks and gestures.

“Yoona?” he asked again, catching Siwon off-guard.

“I don’t know.” Siwon answered finally, gazing out the window into the starry night.

*Read this, please? Just spare a few minutes of your time, for this author. :)

First of all, SO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING IN THREE WEEKS! That is so unlike me, I know, I know. Guys, please try to be patient though. Yelling at me to update does not help. Unsubscribing does not help. Reading a 4000+ word chapter and commenting with only "update soon," does not help. In fact, all these things annoy me. Yes, this chapter is 4000+ words, 4,600-some. I don't remember, and I don't wanna check. :P

You all probably have no idea how much I struggled with this chapter, trying to get it perfect. It's almost 3AM here, and I have to get up at 7AM in the morning; I'm losing my sleep to update for you all, not that I care much about sleep anyway. But seriously, this chapter had so much in it, so much going on. There's TaeTeuk, SunSun, SeoKyu, HyoHyuk, HaeSica, HeeSica, small bits of HaeFany, SiFany, and YoonWon, if you can catch them, and yeah. Listen, I'm not making excuses or anything--I DID update late, and that's entirely my fault, but please, I hope you can all be a bit more patient in the future if it takes weeks again. :)

I assure you, it'll NEVER take this long again. If it does, THEN you can yell at me, okay? Fair deal? Also, I hope you can comment on this chapter with something longer than "update soon." To those who leave long comments, I LOVE YOU. Your comments are my favorites, though I really do love all comments. :)

Moving on, this chapter is unedited. I'll edit it tomorrow--right now, I'd like nothing more than to sleep so I can get up tomorrow. :P Casey, if you spot any mistakes, TELL ME. Wall post, comment, e-mail; you're my official/unofficial mistake spotter. :D Please and thank you~

And finally, for those Super Generation fans who crave good one-shots, check out my story, "A Hundred Ways to Love." I'm too tired to link it right now, so find it in my stories, alright? :) It'd be nice if you popped on over there. ^^

COMMENT REPLIES!

@jesc09: Wow, hi, there New Reader! :D Welcome aboard, hehe~ Wow, thanks so much! That's incredible, hehe. Yeah, I'll try. If you noticed, I added some SeoKyu in here. (: Thank you so, so much for your sweet comment. <3

@StrawberryFantasy: Hehe, for now. Duuuude, you know I'll make SeoKyu 'cause one, I love them, and two, YOU love them. XD Thanks a lot for your long comments as always, sis, they're my favorite. 8D And sorry my reply is so short, lol.

@QueeeenB: Wah, thank you! :D Agreed~ Which is why I put a bit of HeeSica in here. :)

@sunset31289: I love them. <3

@lingericious: Ah, you do? :) Thanks a bunch! Hehe, yeah, I loved writing that. <3

@surrealthoughts: THANK YOU, SHIN! 8D LOL, yes, poor Sungmin. XD

@TiHae4ever: Aw, yes. (: Everything's coming out quickly! And I hope you liked the small bit of HaeFany in this, unnie~

@StarryKelly: Hehe, thank you! (: Your comment is sweet. <3 Updated~ Sorry for the long wait!

@chococino30: Wah, thank you! 8D

@chinkyasian: Psh, you're flattering me, Olivia. XD Updated! Sorry I took like an eternity. :3

@SuGenLover: AWHH, UNNIE! :D Haha, your comment made me so happy! <3

@candyredhearts: I do? :) Hehe, thanks, Candy-ah! ^^ Your support means the world~

@KathyXVII: Yep, that's where it's from. :) THANK YOU SO MUCH! 8D Your comments are awesome, thank you.

@RippledOcean: You should've! ;D Maybe I will~ Of course I will, saranghae! <3

@RosyFanfiction: Mmm, I didn't say that. ;) I tried putting SooSun at the beginning, hope it was okay!

@Tikatikolala: Heh, thanks, Tika-unnie! :] And yeah, it was a BTS of SMTOWN Paris~ Yeah, that was a mistake; I fixed it. :) Well, SunSun hasn't fully kicked in yet, but yes. <3

@KPOPfan619: Ahh, thank you. :) Updated, sorry for the wait~

@isabelle: Yes, they are! :D And agreed! Thanks for commenting, I notice you comment on Unexpected Love as well. :)

@moonGY: Aw, thanks, Kate! :) I updated as fast as possible~

@zarina123: Updated~

@gilliancucumber: Wow, thanks a lot. :) Your comment was awesome!

@HaEfAnY4eVeR: Thanks so much! :D Updated~

@ddilfany: Hi, there! :D Welcome! Hehe, I see. Well, I hope you look forward to the rest of the story! And updated, sorry for the wait~

Tell me if I didn't reply to your comment--I got so confused since there were all these vote comments and O___O

I am only three subscribers short till ONE HUNDRED for this story! :D I really can't believe it. <3

And I also hit 6000 views, thanks for that, guys. Your support means the entire universe to me. ♥

Long comments are nice, and feedback is welcome! Remember, this long chapter was for you guys.

And sorry that the Onew/Taeyeon bit didn't make it into this chapter. It'll be first-thing in the next. :)

Sorry if the Main Image makes no sense--let's say that the image represents TaeTeuk's phone convo in this chapter, okay?

And as for the chapter title, well, things are wayy too complicated, and complicated is not enough to describe it. x)

- Jessica