After a few weeks, the Running Men grew accustomed to Ji Hyo's presence on the show. Of course, her being the sole female member meant that they had to watch where their hands were touching during mission games. Apart from that, she was like one of the boys. Reckless, quick-witted and strong. Actually, she was more like Jong Kook than the rest of the cowardly bunch. If it hadn't been for Ji Hyo's physical and mental prowess, there would have been many times where the Running team would have lost against the guests. 

"Here's your americano, milady." Joong Ki handed a cup of coffee to Ji Hyo.

"Thank you, milord." She smiled gratefully to the latter, as he rested his hand on her shoulder for a few seconds before sitting down like the others.

Ji Hyo never starts the day without an americano; today was no exception. Getting yanked out of bed forcefully by her manager and hurled into her van to go get her hair and makeup done was especially difficult on a cold and rainy day. However, as soon as she saw the faces of those she refers to as family, her day instantly brightened up. Despite having to wake up two hours earlier than on any other day, mondays and tuesdays were the highlights of her week. All she had to worry about was whether she wanted to form an alliance with some of the other members or not. Nothing else. Sure, she sometimes got tackled to the ground by Kwang Soo, which resulted in some light bruises, but it was nothing she couldn't handle. He was like a twig that she could effortlessly fold in half. The same could be said about most of the members. By now, every man on the show knew Song Ji Hyo retaliated; she never backed down from a fight.

"Yah, yah, yah. What's going on here? We're filming a variety show, not a dating show!" Suk Jin folded his arms across his chest and pointed his chin towards the sweet duo a few seats from him.

All heads turned towards a blushing Joong Ki, vehemently denying Suk Jin's accusation and a blissful Ji Hyo, who was enjoying her cup of americano, not the least bit affected by the elder's remark.

"Why are you so bitter, hyung? Are you jealous that you don't have a love line?" Jae Suk teased the Impala who responded by lightly pushing him.

"Me, jealous? Of course not, I love my wife! Soo Jung, I love you!" Suk Jin made a heart with his arms and winked at the camera, making everyone recoil in disgust. "Last time you said something like that, I had to sleep on the couch for a week!" He half-joked, earning laughter from his dongsaengs and a sympathizing tap from the Grasshopper. 

"I wish someone would be jealous because of my wandering eye...Ji Hyo?" Gary shifted slightly forward, allowing Ji Hyo to see him from where she sat, while resting his head flirtatiously on his hand. Ji Hyo saw what he was doing and turned away, flustered but amused by his open love call. Even after all this time, she still hadn't gotten use to her Monday Boyfriend's cheesy pickup lines, which were undeniably witty and unbearably cringeworthy, but she had to admit that he was quite a smooth talker.

Seated at the far left corner of the table, a quiet and slightly envious Pororo witnessed the whole scene. Jae Suk noticed and made sure to point it out by teasing him. 

"What?! I don't like Song Ji Hyo!" He blubbered, trying his best to hide his interest in his castmate.

"I don't like you one bit either!" Ji Hyo retorted, offended by his speedy denial.

"Oh, is that right? Then why did the lie detector say the opposite?" Haha snickered, referring to the mission they had awhile ago, which was to make Jae Suk tell a lie. "Yah. You might be a more or less good actress but you can't cheat your way through a lie detector, I know you want some of this." He motioned to his body as if he had a killer body, a smug expression on his face.

Ji Hyo glared at him and raised a fist threateningly. She hissed through her teeth and was about to go kick him when Jae Suk hurriedly made his way to her and held her back from harming the cowering man. He grabbed her pale fist in his strong calloused hands and wrapped his arm around her slender shoulders. The other Running Man members  laughed as they watched the Nation's MC calm down the violently animated actress.

"Inhale, exhale. Take deep breaths, Ji Hyo." He looked into her eyes and lowered her clenched hand. Ji Hyo followed his instructions with flared nostrils. Through gritted teeth, she vowed to take revenge on poor short Haha. Jae Suk, who was the only one close enough to hear her threats, snickered, entertained by her burning desire to make him pay for calling her a bad actress.

"Hyung, shouldn't you let go of Ji Hyo noona?" Kwang Soo asked, an odd look on his face. "You've been holding her  for quite a long time now! She doesn't even have the urge to murder Haha hyung anymore." 

Jae Suk released the Ace from his grasp and awkwardly patted her head, as they avoided eye contact, both embarrassed. "You're the one who wants to be in a love line with Ji Hyo!" Suk Jin accused the younger man, pointing a finger at him.

Jae Suk rolled his eyes and nodded slowly, a crooked smile on his face. "I know what you're trying to do, hyung. You want to cause trouble in my marriage just like I did with yours. It won't work, my wife and Ji Hyo are good friends!" He laughed maniacally, unfoiling Suk Jin's diabolical plan.

Coincidentally, today's episode had to do with love lines. Aware that team bonding episodes were popular amongst the viewers of Running Man, the pds had decided to dedicate a whole episode to the relationships between the members. The members were separated into pairs which had been voted by the fans beforehand; Kwang Soo and Haha, Suk Jin and Jong Kook, Joong Ki and Gary, Ji Hyo and Jae Suk. 

"The pairings are so unusual..." Haha raised an eyebrow over the netizens' choice. "The viewers want us to interact with the member we're the least familiar with!" 

Jae Suk shrugged, nonchalantly. "Well, I don't know about you guys but Ji Hyo and I are like two peas in a pod. Come on, let's win this race, Ji Hyo-ah!" He extended his hand and wriggled his eyebrows as she laughed and clasp her hand with his. They stormed out of the coffee shop like an eloping couple, their VJs having trouble catching up to them. The instructions got sent to them via text message.

Piggyback your partner all the way to À Toi, Pour Toujours café.

The Candy Alliance pair immediately spun into actions, Ji Hyo jumping on Jae Suk's back and Jae Suk power walking to the french café. They had barely passed two blocks that Jae Suk was already huffing, sweat trickling down his temple. "Yah, how many kilograms do you weight?!"

Ji Hyo slapped his toned bicep and wiped his damp forehead. "None of your business!"

"Song Ji Yok, you! Next time, you piggyback me!" He said, out of breath. She chuckled and tied his fringe into a small ponytail. 

They eventually made it to the shop, although Jae Suk was depleted of his energy. As soon as they entered the cool café, Jae Suk gently put down Ji Hyo on top of the nearest table, before collapsing on the nearest chair. Ji Hyo asked for a glass of icy cold water and put the glass to his lips, a hand supporting his head, feeling deeply apologetic since she was the cause of his misery. 

"I'm going to lose weight, oppa! I promise!" She wiped his sweaty nose, remorse written all over her face. He sat up with difficulty and flashed her a silly smile. He ruffled her hair with one hand and guided her to the mission room with the other hand. There, disguised as what seemed to be a female european barista, Dong Wan FD handed them the mission card.

You need to answer three questions correctly, the same answer has to come from both of the team members. Upon the success of your mission, you'll be given a dessert accordingly to the position you finished at in the first section which you'll have to feed to your partner. The first team to finish the mission will have an advantage that will be revealed in the final race.

"Give us the questions! Quick!" Ji Hyo rushed the pd as she spotted Jong Kook struggling to carry up the stairs what looked like to be Suk Jin wearing a lady's wig and red lipstick. 

"True or false, the average person will shed ten pounds of skin in their lifetime?"

Jae Suk laughed because of the absurdity of the question and Ji Hyo stared at the FD, dumbstruck. "What are we, doctors?!" Ji Hyo shouted, incredulous, while he counted down.

"False!" They both yelled, eyes wide open, waiting anxiously for the infamous ddaeng.

"Ding, dong, daeng!"

They high fived each other, shocked they got the right answer, then Jae Suk immediately went into mr. know-it-all mode. Ji Hyo, taking none of the nonsense about his hobby as a fervent reader of medical handbooks, punched him in the stomach, greatly surprised by the firmness of his abdominal area. She poked him with two fingers and patted his abs with a hilariously astonished expression. Jae Suk, caught off guard by the small hands travelling all over his stomach, stared at her, his ears turning red. Instinctively, he put his hand to his chest in an x-shape, protecting it from her intruding touch, just like a woman would in dramaland.

"Y-Yah, Song Ji Hyo! Where do you think you're touching?!"

She looked at him blankly, blinking countless times before answering. "Oppa, you're very fit! Daebak!"

A mere 30 centimeters separated the couple from the Kook-Jin pair. "That's all thanks to the workout routine I created for him!" Jong Kook boasted.

The Ace whipped her head back to Jae Suk and with terrified eyes, she asked him if he was going to be like Jong Kook if he kept on working out. She didn't need another health monster lecturing her about her diet and pestering her about getting a membership at his gym so he could personally follow her progress.

"Yah, Ji Hyo-ah, I'm right here!" Jong Kook exclaimed but he was completely ignored.

"Stop it, oppa! You already look fantastic!" She complimented Yoo Hyuk, praying to god he would change his mind about becoming an annoying fitness freak like the Spartan singer. He reassured her that it would take at least five years before his body looked as great as Jong Kook's. With that in mind, Ji Hyo was able to turn her focus back to the game although the same couldn't be said about Jae Suk. He was still quite flustered after getting d by his female dongsaeng. Because of his absentmindedness, the pair missed a few questions. Despite the little setback, they still finished first; the other couples were pretty bad at trivia questions.

As soon as Dong Wan congratulated them on the success of the quiz portion of the mission, a staff member wearing a yellow tracksuit served them a dessert: a cheese cake, the dessert that Ji Hyo loathed most in the world as it was the reason her best friend died.

"I can't eat that." She stared at it, her voice trembling lightly. "It brings back painful memories."

Jae Suk gazed at her with concerned eyes. He put the fork in her hands and motionned to his mouth. Conscious of the fact that the Nation's MC had trouble digesting dairy products but that he still insisted on eating her half of the cake profoundly touched her. Once again, she felt a little tingly sensation in her chest. She was sure at 99.9% that it was intense admiration. 

Or was it something dangerous slowly forming?