Chapter 5

She was looking forward to the next day but it all came to halt upon hearing the announcement from TS Entertainment. “Something has come up,” Yongguk announced, gathering everyone. “They scheduled us for a photoshoot.”

 

Amanda laughed loudly. “You're kidding right?” she blurted out. “Please tell me this is a joke.”

 

The room grew silent.

 

The grin she wore soon went away. “Oh my gosh... you're serious,” she muttered.

 

“Yep,” he nodded.

 

“Can't you reschedule it?” she asked impatiently.

 

“Amanda, this is our job. We can't just reschedule something like this,” he responded irritably.

 

“But you guys promised Ryan you'd make it!” she exclaimed, outraged. “You can't just let him down!”

 

“Well, I'm sorry, Amanda,” Himchan chimed in. “There's really nothing we can do.”

 

She scoffed, blinking back tears. “Unbelievable,” she muttered to herself. “I guess I should just call Ryan and reschedule.” She finally said before taking out her phone to dial him. Before she proceeded to do so, her phone went off. She beamed as soon as she read the name on the screen. “Hi, Ryan!” she answered cheerily.

 

“Hey, Amanda,” his calm voice rang out from the other end. “Uh, I called to tell you that something's come up and we might have to reschedule today.”

 

She frowned, “Oh, okay,” she said.

 

“I'm sorry,” he told her.

 

“No, no, it's fine,” she said, trying to hide her disappointment. “I understand.”

 

“We're gonna have to try this again tomorrow evening,” he said. “Does that sound good?”

 

“Sure,” she agreed. “Tomorrow sounds perfect.”

 

“However, I am gonna want the guys to stop by today,” he finally said.

 

“Today?” she repeated, glancing over at the guys in speaking. They pretended not to listen but Amanda still saw right through them. “I'm not sure if that's a good idea. You see, something's also come up for them as well and I was actually about to call you to ask to reschedule.”

 

He chuckled wearily, “Yeah, you see, that's the thing, um,” he glanced over his own shoulder to see the crew setting up around the ring and the mats. “I actually needed to talk to you guys about something. Do you think you can bring them soon?”

 

She sighed heavily. “Alright, I'll see what I can do,” she finally said before hanging up. “See you then, Ryan. Bye.”

 

As soon as she hung up, she turned to face them. “So...” Youngjae spoke up first. “How did it go?”

 

She sighed before grabbing her purse. “Let's go somewhere for a bit,” she suggested.

 

“Where?” Daehyun asked. “We have a photoshoot to get to.”

 

“Just come with me, will ya?” she demanded before heading out the door.

 

Reluctantly, the guys soon followed her to the van. They would soon make a stop to the gym before the boys had to go to their scheduled photoshoot. The car ride was silent. Amanda soon realized how ridiculous she sounded upon hearing the news. Maybe she was being a brat but the boys didn't ask to have a sudden schedule. It was their job and it had to be done. Amanda had to understand. She was their friend. Ryan would understand. He probably had a bunch of other stuff to do anyways. Either way, she felt apologetic for wasting his time.

 

“We're really sorry, Manda,” Youngjae spoke up, waking her from her reverie.

 

“Huh?” she sat up turning to face him before giving him a brief smile. “Don't worry about it, guys. I understand and Ryan will too.”

 

Soon, they arrived at the gym and as soon as Amanda and the guys stepped inside. Ryan immediately made his way over to them. “Hey! You're here!” he beamed upon seeing them.

 

“Yeah, we got here as soon as we can,” she said glancing over his shoulder to see a crew at work setting up inside. “Is everything okay? What's going on?”

 

He exhaled sharply, turning to BAP. “That's what I needed to talk to you guys about,” he finally said.

 

“Them?” Amanda pointed to them.

 

“Yeah,” Daehyun furrowed his brows in confusion. “What about us?”

 

“Well, your agency called and asked if they could hold a photoshoot for you guys here in the gym,” he announced.

 

A stunned silence soon followed. “Here?” Amanda spoke up.

 

Ryan nodded. “I'm pretty sure they need you guys inside right now,” he told BAP.

 

Eventually, the group made their way inside with Yongguk glancing over his shoulder towards Amanda and Ryan. She gave him a smile and thumbs up to ensure she'd be alright. Soon, he went inside to join the others.

 

“What a surprise,” she remarked as soon as they were gone.

 

“Yeah,” Ryan nodded in agreement. “I didn't expect it either.”

 

“You know,” she chuckled, “I almost called you to reschedule too. But, you beat me to it.”

 

“Sweet!” he exclaimed, raising a victorious fist.

 

She scoffed rolling her eyes. “Oh whatever,” she sneered. “On the bright side, you don't have to deal with me today.”

 

“I'm already dealing with you right now,” he countered back which earned a smack on the arm from Amanda.

 

“You're asking to get murdered,” she eyed him threateningly.

 

He scoffed. “I'd like to see you try,” he said huffily. Eventually, their playful facade went away as he nodded over to the other room. “Wanna go and watch?”

 

“Is it okay?” she asked wearily.

 

“Yeah, why not?” he shrugged. “I mean they're using the gym so they should at least allow me to see what's going on.”

 

“You're right. Sounds good,” she nodded as she followed behind. They stood by the door, peeking their heads inside. Ryan leaned against the door frame beside her.

 

Just then, a thought soon occurred to Ryan as he had this adorable gleam in his eyes. “Wanna make funny faces so that we can mess them up?!” he suggested eagerly.

 

Amanda giggled and nodded. “Let's do it!” she exclaimed excitedly.

 

As Ryan led her inside, BAP shifted their attention to the photographer as he assigned them positions. Amanda sat close beside Ryan as they looked over at BAP. “So who do we target first?” Ryan asked.

 

Amanda shifted her attention over to the group and picked the perfect candidate. “How about Youngjae?” she suggested.

 

“Alright,” Ryan nodded, following her gaze, before clearing his throat.

 

Ryan gave Amanda a sly smile before shifting his attention over to Youngjae. He proceeded to smile widely over at Youngjae, wriggling his eyebrows and even moving his eyes around. With the help of Amanda, Ryan puffed out his cheeks allowing her to poke one with an index finger. He even made farting noises which garnered the attention of everyone else. Immediately, Amanda and Ryan feigned innocence, with Amanda stifling her laughter, as the whole room turned their attention over to the two friends.

 

Youngjae soon snorted before bursting into a fit of giggles. The others followed suit not long after. “I'm sorry,” he laughed, clutching his stomach. “I need a minute.” He said, taking a moment to regain his composure.

 

The photographer sighed. “Alright, take a short break, everyone,” he announced.

 

“Good job,” Amanda whispered holding out a hand for Ryan to slap.

 

He gave her a high five in return before eventually bursting into laughter once again.

 

Meanwhile, BAP stood still as they watched Amanda and Ryan laughing together as if they were in on some inside joke. Yongguk clenched his jaw angrily as he watched. Eventually, Amanda and Ryan shifted their attention over to the group, waving happily. The group awkwardly returned the favor.

 

“They're having an awful lot of fun,” Daehyun sneered.

 

“No kidding,” Himchan muttered.

 

“Alright, back into your positions,” the photographer announced after their intermission was up.

 

The announcement was Amanda and Ryan's cue to continue what they were doing. Daehyun was the next victim. Even though the main vocalist was trying to keep a straight face, Ryan and Amanda persisted in making funnier faces and noises which earned a fit of giggles from Zelo and Jongup.

 

“I'm okay,” Daehyun said, stifling his laughter. Eventually, he burst into a fit of snickers. “I'm so sorry. Go on without me. I need a minute.” He panted, clutching his chest.

 

“Aye, aye, aye,” the photographer sighed, glancing over at Ryan and Amanda. “You guys are ruining my shoot!”

 

Ryan feigned innocence. “What are you talking about? We're just sitting here watching, we're not doing anything,” he said, he lightly elbowed Amanda. “Right, Amanda?”

 

She nodded in return, attempting to maintain a straight face but failed to no avail.

 

The photographer shook his head, running a hand over his face in frustration. “Alright,” he said. “We're doing individual shots. Youngest to oldest, come on.”

 

Ryan and Amanda glanced at one another knowingly as the photographer proceeded to shoot Zelo, standing in the ring, in fighting gear. They even lent him a pair of boxing gloves to look the part. Next up was Jongup, who managed to pose flawlessly as a fighter instead of a dancer. The coordinators did a great job in showing off his muscular arms. It wasn't until he was finally finish with his individual shot, when he glanced over at Ryan and Amanda and flashed his angelic smile. In turn, they both waved over to him.

 

The next person in line was Youngjae. Like Jongup, the coordinators also made sure to show off his arms since they were huge! The intense gaze he showcased to the camera made Amanda see him in a different light for the moment. There was something about that gaze, she found incredibly alluring. She could say the same for Daehyun, who also had a nice gaze. And when he would bite his plump lips, all of the fangirls would be going nuts at that moment. Even though Daehyun was a pain in the , Amanda had to admit that he was looking mighty fine that time.

 

Next up was Himchan. As expected, he posed flawlessly. A man as handsome as Himchan could seriously pull off anything handed to him. His feline-like eyes bored into the camera. Amanda could now understand why he had been chosen to be the group's visual. Himchan was just oozing perfection. And last but not least, was Yongguk.

 

Looking at all of them, each guy legitimately looked like fighters instead of idols. The image suited them really well, Amanda thought.

 

“So how do you know these guys?” asked Ryan, waking her from her slight trance.

 

She took a deep breath, glancing over at Yongguk before turning to Ryan. “I used to have a huge crush on Yongguk a few years ago,” she began. “But he didn't feel the same way. At the time, he was just getting started in the music business so either way, if he wanted a relationship with me, it wouldn't have worked out because of his hectic scheduling not to mention the strict rules of dating. I guess after losing touch we ran into each other again and have since decided to stay friends. That's how I met the other guys. They were debuting with him as a group which is how BAP came about,” she chuckled.

 

“Nice,” Ryan nodded, raising his eyebrows. “At least there are no hard feelings between you and Bang. He seems like a really cool guy from what I noticed.”

 

“He is,” she confirmed. “He's really sweet and very caring. Although, he frustrates the living out of me a majority of the time.”

 

Ryan chuckled. “Do I frustrate you?” he asked.

 

“Of course you do,” she immediately responded with a hint of mischief to her tone.

 

He playfully glowered before reaching up to poke her forehead.

 

“Ow!” she slapped his hand away. “What was that for?!” In turn, Amanda reached over to flick him on the forehead. “There. We're even.”

 

“Ow,” he flatly said, rubbing his forehead.

 

Little did they know, Yongguk was watching their every move and he was starting to feel embittered about it. He felt as if he would go crazy if he had to endure this a little longer. He soon went into the ring for his own individual shoot, trying to mask his anger.

 

“Alright, Yongguk,” the photographer said. “I need you to be aggressive. Could you do that for me? Like be angry.”

 

Yongguk simply nodded as he got into position.

 

“That's perfect!” the photographer exclaimed as he shot away from his camera. “Just like that!” Click. “Beautiful.” Click.

 

Soon, he shifted his attention over to the Amanda and Ryan laughing together. As if sensing him staring her way, she looked over at him with a wide grin, waving happily. He soon looked over at Ryan, who also gave him an encouraging smile before shifting his attention over to Amanda. He whispered something into her ear which prodded her to giggle in return. In turn, his jaw locked angrily as he fixed his gaze over to them.

 

“Yongguk,” the photographer called out, trying to grab his attention.

 

“Bang...” Himchan called out to him.

 

“Hyung?” the younger guys called out to him.

 

Yongguk himself seemed to be lost in his own thoughts before turning to focus his attention to the task at hand. “There you go,” said the photographer. “I thought you were lost for a moment.”

 

“What's up with Yongguk hyung?” Daehyun muttered. “He sure seems pissed.”

 

“No kidding,” Youngjae uttered, seemingly stunned.

 

Himchan observed from the sidelines as he watched his own best friend's behavior. Glancing from Yongguk then over to Amanda and Ryan, it all came together but he decided not to confront anyone about it until he got confirmation. Ryan and Amanda were conversing and laughing together without a care in the world as the rest of the guys watched on. She seemed to be having a nice time, he noticed.

 

“I need you to go for a softer expression,” the photographer instructed Yongguk once again as he clicked away on his camera. “No, Yongguk. That's not it. You still look angry. I said soft. Soft.” He repeated. “Alright,” the photographer stood up, taking a deep breath. “Let's take another short break.” He announced. “What is up with these guys?” he muttered to himself as he walked past Ryan and Amanda.

 

As soon as they heard him, Amanda and Ryan glanced at one another knowingly before bursting into a fit of giggles. “Oops,” Ryan smirked, with an innocent shrug.

 

“That was fun,” Amanda chuckled.

 

“I know, right?” he said in the most animated voice, which only prodded Amanda to laugh harder.

 

Amanda was soon startled by a shadow hovering over them. Much to her relief, it was only Yongguk. “Hey,” she said, surprised.

 

“Good job out there, man,” Ryan commended him.

 

“Yeah, you did great,” Amanda remarked.

 

“Thanks,” he replied dryly without another word.

 

Amanda frowned in return, glancing over at Ryan wearily. She rolled her eyes and shook her head in return. Ryan nodded in understanding, remembering their discussion from earlier. Yongguk was in the midst of irritating her at that moment.

 

As if sensing the awkward atmosphere, Ryan stood up to leave. “I should go check on your photographer before he goes crazy,” he said then proceeded to excuse himself. He peeked his head back inside. “I'll be out here if you need something.”

 

“Alright, thanks Ryan,” Amanda nodded before shifting her attention back to Yongguk, who proceeded to take a seat beside her. It was the same chair where Ryan had sat. “What the hell was that all about?” she demanded.

 

“I thanked him, didn't I?” Yongguk retorted back.

 

“Well, you don't have to be all dry about it,” she countered back. “I mean you could've been a little nicer to him.”

 

Yongguk snorted. “Did I come off that way?” he scoffed. “My bad.” He took a long gulp of water before turning to Amanda. “Anyways, what was so funny?”

 

She appeared to be confused for a moment before her lips curled into a smile. “Oh, right,” she chuckled. “Well, we decided to have fun and make weird faces and funny noises to troll you guys.” She giggled.

 

“No!” Yongguk feigned a surprised expression. “Sounds like you had a swell time!”

 

“Of course it was swell!” she exclaimed giddily. “I mean, it's Ryan, for crying out loud! We ALWAYS have a swell time!” She giggled to herself. “It's not often I get to enjoy myself with him like this so you know...” she trailed off a bit before turning to face him. “Sorry about the distraction. I mean in the end, you guys all did a great job.”

 

He smiled tenderly back at her. “Don't worry about it, we needed a good laugh anyways,” he glanced over at the other guys. “It did liven up the atmosphere a bit.”

 

Amanda chuckled. “At least we were doing something right,” she remarked. “I sort of knew this was a good idea.” she said, staring straight ahead at the ring before them. “This whole fighter image concept suits you guys a lot. You guys all look natural!”

 

“You think so?” he looked down at his wardrobe, which consisted of a black beater, shiny fighting shorts, and hand wraps complete with Yongguk's intense expressions. Before, Amanda used to swoon over him but it didn't seem to affect her as much as before.

 

She smiled, “Yeah,” she nodded.

 

The air grew silent for a moment. As the others were getting another wardrobe change as well as their hair and makeup done for their last group shot, the photographer soon stepped inside. “Alright, are you ready?” he asked Yongguk.

 

Yongguk glanced from Amanda to the photographer before nodding. “Yep,” he stood up, looking down at Amanda once again before following the photographer to the ring.

 

She gave him another encouraging smile before standing up then making her way out the door to find Ryan at the desk, looking over paperwork. He looked up as soon as he spotted her. “Hey,” he said.

 

“Back to work?” she asked, nodding towards the paperwork.

 

“Yep,” he nodded, glancing towards the door. “How are they holding up in there?”

 

Amanda sighed, following his gaze. “They have one more group shot and then they're good to go. Thanks for having us,” she said sincerely.

 

“Hey, anytime,” he grinned back at her. “This helps a lot so I should be thanking you for helping us.”

 

“Do I get compensated for helping you?” she asked, using her best witty tone.

 

“I can't pay you anything because as you should know by now,” he said leaning in as if to tell her a top secret. “I'm dead broke.”

 

“Aren't we all,” Amanda remarked, rolling her eyes. “And I didn't ask for money, you know.” She paused momentarily before speaking again. “I was thinking maybe we could—“ Before she could finish, the door flew open.

 

“Hey, sorry for being late,” a female voice rang out, panting. “But I got here as fast as I can. Anyways, what did you need from me?”

 

Amanda and Ryan turned to find Sue, standing by the doorway, catching her breath. “Hey,” Ryan greeted her happily as he walked up to her, pulling her into a tight hug. “You're here and that's all that matters.”

 

Amanda watched on as they shared their tender moment. There was an embittered feeling enveloping her emotions at that point. For some reason, she felt as if she'd been imposing, not the other way around. “Hi, Sue,” she spoke up loudly enough to garner their attention.

 

She pulled away from Ryan and grinned widely. “Hey Amanda!” she greeted. “I didn't know you were here!”

 

Amanda chuckled, nodding. “Yeah,” she said, glancing over her shoulder into the other room. “I'm here with my friends.”

 

“Oh really?” she perked up making her way inside, past Amanda. “What's going on in here?”

 

“Turns out, the guys are actually having a photo shoot right here in the gym,” Ryan said from behind her. “Their agency called to ask. I mean, why not? We're trying to pick up some more clients and this could be very helpful.”

 

“Oh nice,” Sue beamed as she watched the guys gather altogether for their group shot in the center of the ring. “Looks good so far.” She looked on approvingly, turning to face Amanda. “And you're sure you don't have a thing for any of them?”

 

Amanda immediately shook her head. “No! Absolutely not!”

 

“They're cute, why not?” she asked.

 

“I thought I told you, Sue,” Amanda reminded her. “We're just friends. A relationship is highly impossible.” She glanced over at her friends. “And, none of them see me like that.”

 

“If you say so,” she sang out, staring at the six guys in speaking. “Hey Ryan,” she turned to Amanda's crush with a smirk. “Don't you think Amanda should get with one of those guys?”

 

Amanda turned to Ryan expectantly. “Uh,” he uttered, considering it a moment before grinning. “I don't see why not.”

 

Amanda rolled her eyes, shaking her head. “They're just friends, Ryan,” she stated emphatically. “End of story.”

 

Ryan shrugged nonchalantly. “Whatever you say,” he said. “Just do whatever you want. If you don't like them, then cool. If you do like them like that, then hey, it wouldn't hurt to tell them how you feel.”

 

But I do like someone. I like you, you idiot, she wanted to say but knew it was a bad idea right at that moment. “Right, Ryan,” Amanda said. “Thanks for the input.”

 

“That's what I'm here for,” he huffed proudly.

 

Soon, the bell above the door rang, prompting the three of them to look in its direction. “Hey, I saw a group of girls standing out there, is anyone gonna tell me what's going on?” Anthony said as soon as he stepped inside, adjusting his gym bag on his shoulder.

 

As soon as the door closed, there were a few heads pressed against the glass, startling Amanda. “Holy !” she flinched.

 

Anthony glanced over his shoulder at the door looking confused. “Should I let them inside?” he asked making his way back to the door.

 

“No!” Amanda ran over to stop him. “Do NOT let them in!”

 

“Why?” Anthony asked in confusion. “Do you know them or something?”

 

Amanda turned to glance over her shoulder into the other room before taking a deep breath. “That's the one thing I kind of failed to tell you about prior to giving you a referral about my friends,” she said, pausing for a moment. “They have crazy fangirls.”

 

The whole room grew silent. “Crazy fangirls?” Anthony repeated.

 

“Yeah,” Amanda nodded before making her way towards the door to the other room. “I should go warn them.”

 

“Should I ask them to leave?” Ryan called out to her, tilting his head towards the door.

 

Amanda looked over her shoulder, sighing. “If you want, you can. But I doubt you'll have any luck.”

 

“What's that supposed to mean?” Ryan asked in confusion, perking up. But it was too late, she was already gone. Sighing, he eventually went outside to talk to these fangirls.

 

“What are they doing?” asked Anthony, motioning towards BAP.

 

“I think they were having a photo shoot or something,” Sue responded peering back inside before glancing back at him. “Training today?”

 

Anthony nodded. “At least trying to get some training done today,” he said.

 

Soon, the door flew opened with Ryan rushing back inside, exhaling sharply. “That went well,” he sarcastically remarked.

 

Sue immediately made her way over to him, “Why? What happened?”

 

“They refused to listen to me,” he sighed, glancing over his shoulder. “They said they'd leave if they could get a glimpse of BAP.”

 

“Hmm,” Anthony hummed, “Manda wasn't kidding when she said they were crazy.”

 

Meanwhile, Amanda stood before BAP as they were wrapping up their shoot then getting changed into their regular clothes. “Guys, we have a bit of a problem,” she announced pacing before them.

 

“What's wrong?” Yongguk looked up from his iPod.

 

“It seems as though your fans know you're here,” she pointed out matter-of-factly.

 

“Seriously?” Daehyun's head immediately shot up from his iPad.

 

Amanda nodded. “Mhmm,” she glanced over towards Anthony, Ryan, and Sue, who were all distracted at some point. When Sue placed an tender hand on Ryan's shoulder, it didn't seem to sit well with her, especially when Ryan tenderly smiled back at her. Clenching her fist angrily, Amanda knew she had to brush those feelings aside for her friends since their lives were basically in jeopardy at that moment. “I'm pretty sure they were bothering Anthony and from what I could tell, they may have done something to Ryan since he was actually going outside to ask them to leave.”

 

“Oh no,” Youngjae said wearily.

 

Yongguk sighed, rubbing his forehead with the back of his hand. Before long, he stood up. “Let's go,” he announced.

 

“Bang, what do you think you're doing?” Himchan asked worriedly.

 

“There's no other way out of here so we're gonna have to face them. Do you have another plan?” Yongguk countered back. “If so, please do tell.”

 

The visual remained silent. The leader made a valid point, he realized. The group watched on as Yongguk made his way towards the door where Ryan, Sue, and Anthony stood. Reluctantly, they followed suit.

 

“We're really sorry about what happened to you guys,” Yongguk said, looking from Ryan to Anthony.

 

“Don't worry about it,” Ryan assured him. “We understand. Amanda already gave us a lowdown on how crazy your fans could get.”

 

“And yet, there's nothing we could do about it,” Yongguk sighed. “Again, I apologize.”

 

“Maybe some of your fans might consider signing up with us,” Ryan joked but no one was laughing.

 

“Anyways, we should all get going,” Yongguk announced, looking to the other guys. Eventually, he led them out of the building where they were met with screaming fangirls. Ryan and Anthony immediately covered their ears.

 

“Good Lord,” Ryan remarked after the screaming stopped. “What the hell was that?”

 

“That would be an overly crazed fangirl,” Amanda pointed out matter-of-factly.

 

“And they have to deal with this?” Anthony asked. Amanda simply nodded. “I mean I'm sure the attention is nice but that is just straight up scary.”

 

“Tell me about it,” she muttered. “I would be murdered if they saw me with them which is why I'm in here right now.”

 

“Wait, so how are you getting home?” Anthony asked.

 

“I called the company to bring a separate car for me,” she pointed out. “Which reminds me, I should tell them to go on without me.” Taking out her phone, she called Yongguk. “Hey, I'm gonna meet you guys back at the dorm... I'll just call someone to come get me... Just until those girls leave... Yes, I'll be fine... Ryan's here so I'll be in good hands... Alright, see you then. Bye.” She clicked END before placing her phone back into her purse. “Guess I'm sticking around for a few more minutes, if you guys don't mind.”

 

“No, not at all,” Ryan beamed. “Stay for as long as you want.”

 

“Alright, I should head inside to get started,” Anthony announced, making his way inside.

 

“Alright see you in a bit,” Ryan nodded before turning to the girls. “I'm about to head inside to help him out. Did you ladies need anything from me?”

 

Amanda and Sue glanced at one another before turning back to him. “Nope,” they replied at once. “Thanks though.”

 

“I'll be in here if you need me,” he finally said, walking away without another word.

 

As he left, Amanda couldn't help but smile to herself. She wanted to stay as an excuse to hang around a little longer. “I saw that,” Sue smirked.

 

“What?” Amanda looked at her.

 

“Is it Anthony?” she asked. “If so, he's got a nice smile so I can't blame you.”

 

Amanda rolled her eyes. “Sure, Anthony is the guy of my dreams,” she remarked.

 

“Oooh, I knew it!” she sang out, giggling. “You should talk to him!”

 

Amanda scoffed. “No! It's not Anthony!” she exclaimed defiantly.

 

Sue's eyes widened. “Wait a minute,” she placed a hand over . “Do you still like Ryan?!”

 

“Shh!!!!” Amanda hissed covering Sue's mouth with the palm of her hand. “Not so loud!”

 

Sue giggled. “Do you?” she asked again.

 

Amanda looked around to check if the coast is clear before nodding sheepishly. “Yes,” she said, raising her hands in defeat. Her expression soon grew solemn as she looked back up at Sue. “Can I be honest with you, Sue?”

 

“Okay, sure,” Sue nodded, sitting down behind the desk. She ushered Amanda into settling onto a chair beside her.

 

Eventually, Amanda sat down setting her purse down on the ground. “I know that you work with Ryan and I know about those little lunch dates as I've seen on your updates on Instagram,” she began, taking a deep breath. “Chelle has jokingly implied to Aber about the possibility of something possibly blossoming between you and Ryan and I'm gonna be completely honest and tell you that if something were to happen between you and Ryan, I'm not gonna be happy about it.”

 

For a moment, the air grew silent before Sue eventually burst into laughter. “Hahahahahahahaha...”

 

Amanda sat in silence, allowing Sue to let out all that laughter before it eventually died down. “I guess it is funny,” she chuckled.

 

“Oh, Amanda,” Sue managed, catching her breath. “You're so funny. Nothing's going on between me and Ryan. We've just grabbed lunch a few times and he's asked me out before but I told him I'd take a rain check so you're good.”

 

Amanda breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh,” she said, smiling. “That's nice. I guess. I just figured I'd tell you how I feel, that's all.”

 

“I know, and I'm glad you did,” she said, placing an assuring hand over Amanda's. “Thanks for telling me.”

 

Glancing over her shoulder towards the workout room where Ryan was assisting Anthony, Amanda eventually turned to face Sue once again. “I also have one other thing to add,” she said. Sue looked to her expectantly. “If he asks you out again, you have a right to say yes, if you want. I really don't want to be that kind of person. I mean we're all adults here.”

 

Sue sighed heavily. “Okay but I doubt he'll ask me again,” she said reassuringly.

 

“Thanks, Sue,” she squeezed Sue's hand. “I'm really glad I can be honest with you about this. You have no idea how relieved I am.”

 

“Sure, Amanda,” she grinned widely. “Anytime.”

 

Checking the time, Amanda stood up. “And I should really get going before the boys drive each other crazy,” she said, gathering her bag and jacket.

 

“Okay, you'll stop by tomorrow, right?” she asked.

 

Amanda nodded, smiling. “Yep, our first lesson is tomorrow. We wouldn't wanna miss it,” she said.

 

“Alright, see you tomorrow, Amanda. Good night!”

 

“Night!” Amanda waved before walking out the door.

 

“You're all smiles today,” remarked Youngjae, as everyone gathered around for dinner that night.

 

“I have every reason to be,” she countered back, sighing happily.

 

Daehyun snorted. “Why? Because you hung out with your boyfriend today?” He shook his head.

 

Amanda shot him a look. “He's not my boyfriend, thank you very much,” she shot back.

 

“You wish he was,” Himchan chimed in.

 

She pouted at him before smiling to herself. “I guess so,” she nodded sheepishly, blushing. “But that's not the only reason I'm smiling.”

 

The whole room grew silent, staring back at her expectantly. “Are you gonna tell us the other reason or what?” Daehyun finally asked.

 

Amanda sighed dramatically, rolling her eyes. “Okay fine,” she relented. “I may have finally been upfront about my feelings to someone and it feels great to be honest for once.” She finally said.

 

The guys all stared back at her in confusion before resuming what they were doing, dropping the subject matter. Good, she thought. She was in no mood to provide an explanation as to what her words meant. She'd explain it some other time because if she explained it now, it might bring her mood down and no one wanted to be around her when she was upset. At least Sue understood how she felt. That being said, Amanda could sleep soundly that night.