“I accept,” you declare to the ahjumma, handing her your application form.
I need to do this. For appa.
“Kasahamnida,” she thanks you. “You should start working tomorrow. I hope you can become good friends with my other employee.”
“What is her name?” you ask out of curiosity.
“Not so much as a ‘she’, but a ‘he’.” she says with a warm smile.
As you leave, you think about this employee that had made you a familiar cup of coffee who claims to know you.

...

“Madeline, please stand up and explain the scientific concept regarding hurricanes.” demands the teacher in a measured voice.
You scowl at Him Chan, the one who got you in trouble in the first place. You get up, and recite a paragraph from the textbook about hurricanes. Luckily, you had the rare talent of flash memorization. You smirk as you complete the last word of your paragraph.

Everyone looks at you, impressed, all nodding in agreement. Him Chan just maintains his playful smirk as you take your seat. As time passes, all your hear is the teacher talking and the ticking of the clock. Your eyelids start to get heavy, and you lower your head to the table, and fall asleep.

When you wake up, the classroom is empty. Outside, is the sunset, with an orange haze blanketing the clear sky. You groan, and feel something wrapped on your shoulders. A jacket. As you lift your head and scratch your eyes, you see a folded up note on your table.

Come to the my dorm and return my jacket.
Room 201
Him Chan

Ugh. I have to go and return his jacket? The boys’ dorms are all the way on the other side of the campus! But still, I have to thank him for lending it to me after all. You grit your teeth and drag your lazy feet out of the classroom and into open air. It was a cold afternoon, and the breeze was cold against your skin, plaguing it with goosebumps. You shiver, hugging your arms and start sprinting until you begin to sweat.

Outside Room 201, you hear yelling and playful screaming from the inside. You take a break for a while, breathing heavily and leaning on the wall. You wipe the sweat from your forehead, and just before your knuckles touch the oak wood of the door, the door pulls open.

“Ah, look a girl!!!” exclaims a guy that you can’t identify.

They’re definitely not idols yet, I don't recognize their faces. Maybe they’re debuting soon?
“Did you need anything?” asks a muscular man with a deep voice.
So deep. He is shirtless, and he holds a bottle in his hand. You avert your eyes, feeling slightly uncomfortable.
“Yah, hyung, you’re making her uncomfortable!” yells a guy from behind, who sits on the couch of their dorm. “I got this.”
The guy walks up to you, his face getting closer and closer to yours.
“What’s the name of this beautiful woman that stands before me?” he asks flirtatiously.

“Kim Madeline,” you state, not fazed by his attempt to flirt with you.
As you cross your arms, the mouths of the three boys drop down. You raise an eyebrow, slightly confused. What’s wrong with my name?
“OMO! Aren’t you the ex-girlfriend of Z—” yells a guy, who gets jabbed in the stomach by the elbow of the half one.
“Uh,” he coughs, clearing his throat. “Are you by any chance looking for someone?”
They all exchange nervous looks, and you even catch someone’s adam’s apple bob up, gulping.

You hold your arm out, with the jacket on it.
“I wanted to return this to Kim Him Chan. He told me to come here.” you say, in a manner that sounded like you were reciting a fact.
“Ahhh...” they all say in unison, sighing with relief.
“Kasahamnida!!! Goodbye!” yells a guy as he shuts the door in front of your face.

Him Chan POV:
As you take your eyes off the television screen, the members all surround you intimidatingly.
“Waeyo?” you ask as you put down your game controller.
“This is serious,” says Yongguk, while pulling on a muscle tee.

“Why would you call Kim Madeline here? You know she’s Zelo’s ex.” he scolds you.
“I know.” you reply.
“Then why the heck would you call her here?!” questions Youngjae. “You know that she’s not supposed to see Zelo.”
“Because I wanted her to bring back my jacket. That’s all.” you reply quickly, walking to the bathroom.
“Him Chan, what exactly are you tryi—”
“Nothing,” you interrupt Dae Hyun, by knocking on the door. “Yah, Zelo, are you done in there?”

Zelo comes out of the shower with a towel wrapped around his neck. He is dressed in a basic white tee and loose pants. You stare at his wet, blue hair, which was fading at the roots.
“You know, you’ll have to dye it blonde for our debut.” you say to him, walking into the bathroom.
“I know, I just wanted to keep this hairstyle for as long as I could.” he says, patting his wet hair.
You close the door behind you and turn the shower on.

Why does Zelo’s past relationship with Madeline bother me so much? You shake your head under the water that spurts from the shower. You stand still, staring into the distance for too long until you feel as if your were outside, under the warm rain. You snap back to reality and turn the shower tap off.