By the end of Monday, the rumor about Seungyoon and Mino fighting had blown up, spreading in the entire school. Before P.E., Hana heard some of her girl classmates in the locker room talk about WINNER possibly disbanding. And then she overheard a group of boys discuss who was the better leader: Mino or Seungyoon, during a five minute break after English. By her last class, everyone was busy talking amongst themselves about WINNER. She didn’t really care for much of their conversations at this point (because there were just too many contradictory speculations being floated around), but she did catch one exchange between her seatmate and the girl sitting in front of her, the highlight of which was about iKon being the better group anyway.

She shook her head, amazed at the power of gossip mongers. In a matter of hours, the whole school was involved in WINNER drama, which probably wasn’t even true. If that girl who’d been spouting lies about WINNER being in a military camp was the source of the alleged Seungyoon-Mino feud, then Hana could bet her life it was all a bunch of crap.

She was more than glad when she heard the bell chime, which meant she didn’t have to hear any more ridiculous rumors. And more importantly, since she was now due at Cafe Sonata – the only place in Seoul which had any kind of soul. Granted, she probably had to talk to Ha Neul about Seungyoon and explain that she didn't just get the job to get closer to him. She didn’t even know Seungyoon was Ha Neul’s nephew until last Friday.

When she arrived at the cafe, Yixing wasn’t anywhere in sight. Yixing had told her last week that he was an important trainee, so she guessed he might still be stuck at SM. After cheerfully greeting the barista, she quickly changed into work clothes and made her way to Ha Neul’s office.

“Boss,” she peeked through his door. Ha Neul was uncharacteristically looking troubled as he looked up from his phone.

“Oh good, you’re here,” he said and gestured for her to come in. “I need to talk to you.”

There was something in his tone that indicated he wasn’t in a good mood. And like she’d been dreading all day, Hana worried that maybe Seungyoon had been one step ahead of her and had talked to Ha Neul already, telling him about how she’s a stalker. . I’m going to get fired!

She slowly approached Ha Neul’s desk and hung her head low, thinking of the best way to explain herself. Ha Neul was still typing on his phone so she just kept quiet. She kneaded her hands absentmindedly, getting more and more nervous about what Ha Neul wanted to say.

Finally, Ha Neul put his phone down and sighed. “It’s Seungyoon.”

Hana in a breath at the mention of his name. Her suspicions had been right. That son of a…

“He’s in the hospital right now, and I really need to bring him this,” he pulled something from under the table and stood up to place it next to Hana. It was a guitar case, the same one Hana saw last week when Seungyoon  was there. “He wouldn’t stop texting me, but I have to stay here in case the delivery for the new beans arrive. You know how my supplier usually ‘accidentally’ gives me less bags, or ‘unintentionally’ mixes up my orders and delivers the cheaper ones…”

Hana drowned out Ha Neul’s coffee talk, with only one word sticking out in the string of words her boss just spouted. Hospital?

“Wait, what?”

It seemed Hana interrupted him mid-talk since Ha Neul frowned. “You know, my supplier. The bald guy who came here last Thursday.”

“No, not that, boss,” Hana waved her hand. “I mean Seungyoon being in the hospital.”

“Oh,” he nodded. “Yeah, he was admitted last Saturday. Dengue fever. Can you believe it? There was an outbreak in Japan last week and he was one of the unlucky ones. Apparently, he had taken a trip to Yoyogi park by himself. Aish, this boy! He even performed last Friday when he was clearly feeling sick.”

Hana’s jaw slacked. Suddenly, all the talk in school made no sense. The truth was, she’d been wondering why he wasn’t in school today, too. She didn’t completely believe all the outrageous rumors, but there were some she thought might be plausible. Now she knows none of the Seungyoon talk were even remotely close to the truth.

Apparently, the reason why Seungyoon wasn’t there was because he was in the hospital. She closed her eyes and sighed. If those people who said nasty things about WINNER find out the truth, they’ll surely eat their words. She can imagine their guilty faces now. She couldn’t wait for them to find out, if only to prove how gossip brings out the worst in people.

“s are still stuck in rehearsals so they couldn’t come by. I was going to ask Yixing to do it but he just texted me that he’s going to be late today.”

Hana stared at Ha Neul incredulously, an eerie feeling enveloping her. No way, he’s not going to ask me to bring it instead, right?

“So can I ask you a favor and do this one thing for me? Seungyoon can be irritatingly persistent and he wouldn’t stop spamming me with texts and calls. He said he’s bored out of his mind.”

Hana shook her head vigorously. “Don’t they have some manager to do it?” She knew she sounded strange being so worked up about a simple task. But she can’t possibly go to the hospital, not when Seungyoon keeps mistaking her for a stalker!

“They’re still trainees, so they can’t use their manager for personal errands,” Ha Neul explained. “It won’t take long. I’ll give you money for taxi. Please?” Just then, his phone started ringing. Ha Neul let out a frustrated sigh and held up his phone for Hana to see. There was a picture of Seungyoon on the screen. “See? He’s driving me crazy.”

Hana pouted, watching as Ha Neul answered his phone.

“Yes, yes! I’m asking someone to bring it there.” “Coffee? Are you even allowed?” “Fifteen minutes. Just stay put for fifteen minutes. Why are you so demanding? You’re supposed to be sick!” “No, don’t tell Noona! It wasn’t me, it was that damn dog that broke her vase!” “YA Kang Seungyoon!” “Okay, okay!”

When he ended the call, Hana knew it was over. Ha Neul was still her boss, and judging by the look on his face, he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. With a helpless sigh, she picked up the guitar and turned to face her boss.

Ha Neul looked apologetic, but he smiled. “Samsung Medical Center. Room 528.”

“Can you at least tell him that I’m the one bringing it to him? I don’t want him to be shocked when I get there,” she said blankly, already dreading the look on Seungyoon’s face when he lays eyes on her.

“Will do. Thanks, Hana. You’re the best!” Ha Neul gave her a thumbs up, but Hana only grimaced.

Half an hour later, Hana stood in front of a white door with a gold plated number ‘528’ on it. Under the number was the name ‘Kang Seung Yoon’. She lingered there for about a minute, trying to imagine the possible scenarios as soon as she walks into his hospital room. She needed to be prepared for all possibilities. Even if Ha Neul had told Seungyoon she was coming, he could still be pissed off. And if Ha Neul had forgotten to tell him, then she was probably going to be accused of being a stalker again. Either way, unless Seungyoon believed what she told him last Friday, it wasn’t going to end well.

Gathering all her courage, she knocked three times, turned the knob, and pushed the door open slowly. Seungyoon was on his bed with his torso raised, so he was in a sitting position. He was reading a magazine, but when he heard the door, he put it down on his lap and looked up. When their eyes met, she immediately knew that he’d been expecting her. She took one step inside, relieved that he wasn’t screaming ‘STALKER!’, but that was temporary since the expression on his face showed distaste. Obviously, she w