The sound booming off the giant speakers ringed in Soo Hee’s ears as she entered the club together with her friends. She had to grab onto Chan Yeol’s arm as they made their way through the sweaty bodies towards the table where the rest of Yi Fan’s gang was seated. The lights that bounced off the dance floor made Soo Hee dizzy so she gripped on Chan Yeol’s arm tighter to prevent herself from falling.

“You’re going to rip my jacket off, Soo.”

Soo Hee immediately let go of Chan Yeol’s jacket and moved to hold onto the belt loops in his jeans. Chan Yeol let out a small squeak of surprise before prying Soo Hee’s hands off his pants.

“Soo, don’t grab me like that! You’re not a kid anymore!”

“But I might get lost!”

“You’re not a kid anymore.”

Soo Hee reluctantly let go of her cousin’s pants and bit her lip. She tried to follow the long striding steps of Chanyeol but try as she might, her legs were just too short. The moment she could no longer see Chanyeol’s head, she began to hyperventilate.

The constantly moving sea of bodies and blaring music made Soo Hee feel more and more dizzy until she felt like she was about to faint any minute. She tried to stand on her tippy toes to look for her friends but it was no use.

Sometimes, Soo Hee wonders if being short was a curse.

As she squeezed herself through the increasing crowd, a soft pair of hands covered her line of vision. Her glasses pressed onto the bridge of her nose as her captor chuckled.

“Let me go!” she screamed as she pulled the hands away from her face before turning around.

“Annyeong.”

Joon Myeon stood behind her, a smile plastered on his face as he waved at her. He was wearing a black long-sleeved, V-neck shirt and gray acid-washed pants paired with black sneakers. A silver dog tag hung around his neck and his black hair was styled to show off his forehead.

“Hi.” Soo Hee gave a small smile.

“Want to go the table? Yeol’s looking for you!” Joon Myeon half-shouted in her ear for her to hear what he was saying under the loud music playing.

She just nodded in response before following him through the crowd. The dancing couples and groups were giving her a hard time to catch up and she started to call out when she noticed Joon Myeon disappear from her line of vision.

“Joon Myeon! Joon Myeon! Su-”

She was cut off when she felt a hand wrap around her wrist and pull her through the crowd. She stared at Joon Myeon’s broad back as he maneuvered them towards the table where the rest of their friends were waiting.

“There you are!” Ha Ra exclaimed.

“Wow, you really did get lost.” Chanyeol chimed in disbelievingly.

Soo Hee glared at her cousin. Joon Myeon was about to pull back a seat for her when Min Seok intercepted.

“I’ll take it from here, Suho.” Min Seok stated as he held onto the chair. Soo Hee saw Joon Myeon reluctantly nod before flashing her a small smile as he went to take his seat.

“Here you go, Soo.” Min Seok pulled back the seat.

“Thank you.” Soo Hee smiled in thanks as she took her seat. Min Seok sat next to her with a smile.

The early stages of the night went smooth as they all chatted and told stories but as soon as the clock struck eleven, everything started to become a bit tipsy. Ha Ra, Chan Yeol, and Baek Hyun were laughing nonstop as they kept drinking the pink beverage that Soo Hee started to presume had a jigger of alcohol mixed in it. Jae Hee and Zi Tao were busy dancing it off in the dance floor with an overexcited Min Seok cheering them on with his phone on record. The only ones who still seemed to be normal were Yi Fan who was silently downing shots one at a time, Joon Myeon who was playing with the peanuts in the table, and her.

“So…” Joon Myeon started.

Soo Hee didn’t even notice him move to sit in the space Min Seok was sitting on earlier until he spoke. She looked at him and noticed that he was slightly swaying in his seat, eyes closing slowly from time to time as he placed his chin on his propped up arm while his gaze stared directly at the dancing people.

“Does Min Seok hate me or something?” Joon Myeon blurted out, making her choke on her soda.

“W-what made you say t-that?” Soo Hee nervously asked.

Joon Myeon shrugged as he played with the drink in his glass, swirling it around until a drop spilled onto the table.

“Whoops.” Joon Myeon chuckled as he leaned back in his seat.

“Oppa, are you okay?” she asked. She was starting to get the feeling that Joon Myeon was starting to enter the state of drunkenness.

“I think Xiumin is mad at me. I don’t know why though. I just got back from the States, for ’s sake. I was gone for five months! What did I do to him when I was gone?” Joon Myeon ranted on before slamming his forehead on the table making Soo Hee cringe in shock.

“Are you okay?”

Joon Myeon turned to face her, head not leaving the table.

“Am I a bad friend, Soo Hee-ssi?” he drawled out while frowning.

The only thing Soo Hee could do was shake her head while trying to stifle a giggle. Joon Myeon looked ridiculous in his current position. He was like a puppy who just got kicked out of its home.

“You say that but even you were mad at me when we first saw each other again after five months…” he frowned as he brought his head up to rest on his propped arm again while his eyes stared at her.

Soo Hee presumed that it was the lights playing tricks on her when she saw shadow of sadness in his eyes before he looked away to down another shot of his drink.

“Whatever. What’s important is that we’re friends again, right?” he smiled as he swayed in his seat.

“Oppa, I think you should stop with the drinks.” Soo Hee exclaimed softly as she slowly snatched the glass away from his hand.

Big mistake.

Joon Myeon reached for the drink which Soo Hee tried hard to keep out of reach. She could feel his breath on her neck as he leaned in to grab the drink which she was holding behind her. The smell of alcohol on his breath invaded her nose and she slightly cringed. Joon Myeon’s arms were now clumsily reaching out from her sides and she had to lean back to keep the drink away.

“Joon Myeon-oppa, that’s enough drinki-”

“Why do you keep calling me by my name?” Joon Myeon cut in.

The question made Soo Hee freeze and glance back at eyes which shone with confusion and hurt. She didn’t notice how close Joon Myeon has gotten to her, how his arms were now trapping her, and how his face was mere inches from blushing ones.

“Why can’t you call me ‘Suho’ like the rest? I thought we were best friends…” he whispered softly, sending goosebumps down Soo Hee’s spine.

When she didn’t answer, Joon Myeon inched forward and Soo Hee had to hold her breathe and close her eyes as she envisaged what would happen next, but when nothing happened, she opened her eyes to see Joon Myeon’s head resting on her shoulder.

Soo Hee sighed.

She placed the glass on the table and positioned him in a more comfortable position so that his neck wouldn’t hurt. And as he counted the pace of Joon Myeon’s steady breathing, Soo Hee relaxed and found herself drifting off, not into sleep, but into a dream that seemed so real.

It wasn’t until she felt someone shaking her shoulder that she snapped out of her surreal trance and looked up to meet the concerned look of Min Seok.

“Hey, are you alright? You were staring out into space for a while now…” Min Seok stated and Soo Hee just smiled as he peeked at Joon Myeon’s still sleeping face on her shoulder.

“I was just… thinking, Xiumin-oppa.”

Soo Hee didn’t notice the gleam of suspicion in Min Seok’s eyes nor the jealous gaze he casted behind her because when the others came flocking back to their table, some drunk and some not, they decided to call it a night.

Soo Hee watched, unable to move, as Jae Hee and Zi Tao helped up a slumped, and obviously drunk, Yi Fan to his feet while Ha Ra and Chan Yeol tried to calm down a still laughing Baek Hyun. Soo Hee slowly shook Joon Myeon awake who ended up complaining and asking for five more minutes.

“Oppa, it’s time to go home…” Soo Hee softly coaxed the older boy to wake up but instead of doing so, Joon Myeon just nuzzled further into the crook of her neck. Soo Hee blushed at the intimate action.

“Yah! Suho, get your up!”

One push was enough to get Joon Myeon falling off his seat and landing on the cold, hard concrete with a painful thud. Min Seok was glaring daggers at Joon Myeon who remained sitting on the floor while rubbing his injured bottom.

“Let’s go, Soo Hee. I’ll take you home.” Soo Hee heard Chan Yeol speak.

She absentmindedly nodded her head while getting up from her seat, eyes still glued on Joon Myeon who was now standing and walking (more like staggering) with them towards the exit.

“Bye, guys! Thanks for the night!” Jae Hee waved as she and Ha Ra entered a cab while dragging Yi Fan’s tall frame into the vehicle.

Soo Hee waved goodbye as Zi Tao helped a sleeping Baek Hyun into his own limousine. Min Seok stood by the door of the limo, casting a last glance at her with a smile.

“Goodnight, Soo! I’ll see you in school on Monday.” Min Seok half-shouted before entering the vehicle and waving goodbye behind the car’s window.

“Goodnight, oppa!” Soo Hee waved back with a smile.

“Okay, let’s go. We’ll drop Suho off at his.” she heard Chan Yeol speak and she turned with a small nod.

Chan Yeol had Joon Myeon’s arm around his shoulders and his right arm around Joon Myeon’s waist to support the staggering boy.

“Goddamit, hyung. Stop struggling.”

Soo Hee watched as the Chan Yeol helped Joon Myeon into the back seat while she took her’s in the passenger’s. Chan Yeol revved up the engine and drove down the black-lit road, eyes focused on the unending blackness ahead while Soo Hee’s eyes strayed from the road to the rearview mirror where he caught a glimpse of Joon Myeon’s sleeping face and head tilting to the side.

It wasn’t long until they reached that familiar neighborhood where Soo Hee used to spend most of her time in after classes, and the same place where she saw something she wished she didn’t see.

“Stay in the car, Soo.” Chan Yeol warned as he brought the car into the gates of the massive Kim Mansion.

“I’ll help, oppa.” Soo Hee answered as she got out of the car and assisted her cousin in walking Joon Myeon’s drunken state to the front door.

It took two rings of the doorbell before the wooden door opened to reveal a girl in pajamas.

“Yes? How can I help y-… oh.”

Soo Hee tried her best to remain composed as she can as Chan Yeol transferred Joon Myeon into the arms of the girl – the same girl she wished she didn’t see when she had snuck around the mansion after hearing of Joon Myeon’s return. And now, seeing her standing behind that door in those clothes made her start to believe that something was going on between Joon Myeon and her.

“Thank you for bringing him home.” her voice was sweet and Soo Hee felt like scowling.

“No problem. Goodnight.” she bowed her head and turned around without another word.

The moment she slammed the door of the car, she let out all the anger and jealousy (she can’t deny it) she was keeping in by kicking her legs like a kid having tantrums.

“Careful!” Chan Yeol shrieked as he turned the engine on.

“My car is too valuable to be ruined by your tantrums!”

Soo Hee rolled her eyes and leaned back on her seat, arms crossed in front of her chest, and eyes staring out the window.

“I thought you were over him, but I can see that that’s not entirely true.” Chan Yeol voiced out.

“What are you babbling about?”

“You’re jealous.” he stated matter-of-factly and she snorted.

“Am not.”

“Then tell me why you felt the need to kick my car.”

“Because it’s too new. It needs to break a little.”

“Just shut it, Soo.”

“You started it.”

Silence soon engulfed them as the soft purr of the vehicle hummed in Soo Hee’s ear like a lullaby. She was still staring outside the window at the far-stretched black sky, thoughts in a series of blurs.

Maybe she was jealous, after all.

Maybe she wasn’t completely over him yet.