Three days later, Jongin is released from the hospital, and driven back to EXO's dorm by the manager.

Yet Baekhyun continued to avoid Yun, and wouldn't pick up any of her phone calls nor answer her text messages. She had tried numerous times to ask him what was bothering him when the two left the hospital on their first visit to see Jongin, but he only shot Yun an indiscernible look and shook his head mutely.

Unable to contain her frustration any longer, Yun decided to pay the EXO dorms a visit - planning to congratulate Jongin's recovery as well as force the truth out of Baekhyun and repair the icy relationship which had unfortunately settled between them.

What could he possibly be unhappy about?! ​Yun huffs to herself as she gradually steps down on the car brake for yellowing traffic lights. Jongin is healthy again, I will have my debut as a singer in a little under a week, and EXO is gaining more international and national fans every minute! Why is he being so difficult when we should all be celebrating?

Could it be... her mind wanders to a hidden corner of her worries, could it be that he doesn't want to date me? That can't be though - why did he say all that to Jongin if he didn't even like me? Would Baekhyun really do that to me, even though he knows how I feel about him?

Parking her small two-seater into the car park behind the twelve boy's apartment building, Yun steps hastily around the bend, and nears the elevator in record time.

Answers are desperately needed at this moment, and the girl feels prepared to hear anything that comes out of the childhood friend's mouth -be it good or bad- as long as she doesn't have to drown in her own hypotheses and assumptions any longer.

Ding! dong!

A pair of feet tap impatiently upon the doormat as Yun's trained ears pick up the small tell tale patting of footsteps nearing the main entrance and exit. Must be Baekhyun, she analyses the sound of feet approaching, the sound is rhythmical, and evenly distributed. Baekhyun's footsteps always sound like that - like music.

"Y-Yun!" sure enough, Byun Baekhyun answered the door with a slightly gaping mouth, "w-what are you doing here?" 

"Where are the others? Is anyone home?" she asks, watching him stutter and blush in a flustered manner. "Why are you so nervous?"

"I-I'm not nervous! What are you talking about?" he laughs breathlessly, wiping a hand over the perspiration already forming beneath his hairline. "Kyungsoo went out with Jongin to fetch him the medication the doctor prescribed to him."

Yun nods in understanding, and then breaks into a sly grin. "Liar," she stands on tip toes to wipe a finger along his temple, inspecting the moisture transferred on to her skin. "You're sweating even though it's barely 20°C."

"Uh. Um. T-that's ah..." he seems at loss for words.

"Why didn't you pick up my calls?" the girl frowns, getting down to business without further chit-chat, "nor did you reply to my texts...and whenever I tried to message you online you'd always log off!"

"Ah...About that," he picks at a loose button on his shirt sleeve guiltily, "...I'm sorry."

"I don't want to hear an apology, I want to know the reason!" anger begins to build up within the girl, "you can't just claim a girl as yours in front of another boy, then leave her hanging as if she has committed some sort of inexcusable crime!"

He glances up in surprise at her raised voice, "You really have no idea why I put Jongin through all that?" his own volume increases out of desperation and anxiety, "Lee Yun are you blind, or just plain stupid?"

His words pierce Yun's heart in unimaginable ways, but she ignores the pain as much as possible, and continues her efforts to get down to the bottom of things. "If you don't tell me, how am I supposed to know what you're thinking?"

"Aren't you always watching me? Aren't you always trying to please me and help me and do things in my best interests?"

Yun frowns, "What do you mean?"

"It's obvious! Don't you get it?" he runs a frustrated hand through his already tousled brown hair, "Jongin loves you! He's loved you ever since you started training together. And even though you guys got off to a bad start - he tried to become more mature and help you. Kim Jongin! The boy who can't even cook instant ramen without burning the stove! He. Helped. You."

"Are you...telling me the truth?" Yun's heart fumbles, "Jongin likes me?"

Baekhyun rolls his eyes and pretends to wipe away a tear dramatically, then continues in a sarcastic and hurt tone. "It's so romantic isn't it? You're just dying to fall into his warm embrace aren't you? He saw your true beauty within a few weeks, while we've been friends for more than 5 years and I still don't see you as a love interest. I know, I'm just a bastard who thinks with his private parts and can't even tell whether or not I like you. I get it! So just choose him and leave me!"

"Baekhyun..." Yun softens after his heated speech, and reaches out to wrap him into her arms, "but the one I love is you..."

"I don't deserve you, Yun," he buries his face into the girl's hair, "his eyes looked so empty when I told him we were seeing each other - I've never seen him so lifeless before." Baekhyun takes a deep breath. "I think...I think Jongin loves you more than I could ever imagine."

Yun takes a sharp breath, digesting the weight of what Baekhyun has just revealed to her.

"I think I need some distance between us, Yun," Baekhyun buries his face into his pretty hands, "I don't know how I feel towards you, and I feel like such a loser for lying to Jongin and trying to claim you as my property. I can't live with the guilt, so please just don't look at me for the time being."

Yun sighs, "...I understand." Of course, she always does. Even though what Baekhyun has been trying to say would make almost no sense to any other girl, Lee Yun knows what he's trying to express.

The anxiety, the guilt and the shame; Baekhyun wants to keep her close as a friend, and doesn't want to share her with another boy. Yet at the same time, he isn't prepared to commit to her romantically.

At the moment, however, her bones feel like jelly after the tense conversation, and she wants nothing more than to go home and simply lie down. 

"I'll see you around I guess," She turns around and walks to the stairs, not wanting to wait for the elevator and being around Baekhyun for another second in fear that he would feel uncomfortable. "And...sorry for making you feel bad...sorry that my love is such a burden." 

"...Stupid," Baekhyun whispers after the girl disappears from sight, "why are you the one apologising?"

A week later, Lee Soo Man scans his eyes up and down Yun's form with an emotionless facial mask. "I need you to push yourself harder, and lose enough weight to debut."

"Sir...I really can't do it anymore, it's already three days into May and you said I would either debut this month, or lose the opportunity once and for all." Yun tries to prevent herself from sounding desperate and whiney, but attempts to bargain timidly. "Do you not feel that...the time limit is a little too tight? Is it not possible...to allow me a little more time?"

"Lee Yun," the man sighs impatiently, "every date that I set and every plan that I make is strictly according to schedule - if you cannot meet my requirements, you are not able to join my company. It's as simple as that."

"But--"

"Please leave now," he swivels around in his chair, facing his back to the girl in an indication that their conversation has ended.

Defeated, Yun walks out of the major shareholder's office with slumped shoulders and heavy footsteps. What is the meaning of pushing myself like this? I don't even like being on stage...I just want to sing...

Why must I become a celebrity?

A/N: Phew *wipes sweat* trying to get this story finished asap so I won't have to make you guys wait a bajillion weeks for updates again. Thanks for reading! Comments and upvotes are forever appreciated <3