I awoke the next morning to the bright sun streaming down my face; I sat up in a rush when I remembered what had happened. I grabbed my head in amazement looking at the beautiful dress I was still wearing knowing that everything that occurred the night before was real. I started squirming and writhing in the bed from pure joy. I glanced at Paije who was still sleeping still dressed in her party outfit. I got up and stretched and went over to the window to look out at the glorious view placed in front of us. We suddenly got a hard knock at our joining door. I ran to it quickly in fear that it would wake Paije up. When I opened it, there was Madison’s furious face glaring at me.

“We need to talk!” she exclaimed as I tried to quiet her.

                I looked at Paije who only stirred a little before turning over to her side falling back to sleep.  I gently pushed Madison into her room following behind.

“Do you have any common courtesy? Paije was sleeping!”

“Whatever! I want to know how you got this dress!” She yelled raking her greedy eyes over it.

“A good magician never reveals her tricks” I answered clever.

“HOW DO YOU ALWAYS COME OUT ON TOP?!” She started crying as I looked at her like she was some pathetic creature. “You… ” she sneered.

“Look, I don’t have to stand here and listen-”

“YES! YES YOU DO!” she shrieked beating me to the door so I couldn’t leave. “YOU'RE GOING TO HELP ME!”

“HELP YOU?!” I shouted. “As if” I scoffed.

“Yes, you're going to keep a microscopic low profile. No more performances with idols or dancing incredibly. You are going to-”

“No” I said flatly.

                Her face swished around like I had slapped her. I didn’t have to; my words were enough to snap her back from her hysteria.

“You're mean, selfish and on top of that you ruin my dress without apologizing and still expect me to help you? You're insane and I’m leaving.” I said heading for the other door.

“Please!” She begged.                                                                                           

“You’re delusional!” I answered her slamming the door behind me.

                I quickly entered my side of the room and shut the door locking it shut. This girl was crazy! She was absolutely mental to think that there would be enough money in this world to make me give up this opportunity. I could hear Paije taking a shower in the bathroom as I sat down on the bed bewildered. She came out in a few minutes taking note of my face before laughing out loud.

“What’s so funny?”

“Madison, she’s got some major issues” she added giving her wet hair a quick tousle.

“You heard?” I stated covering my face in my hands out of frustration.

“Well she wasn’t exactly quiet” Paije laughed again. “But the girl is simply out of her mind”

“Enough about her how was your night? I barely saw you at the club; you were all over the place.”

“Me?!” she squealed. “What about you? First you enter in late, and then you hang out with Taeyang. And then somehow I find out you left and then you come back with GD & T.O.P and then end up dancing with Taeyang, Seungri and Hyun Joong.”

                The whole time she was replaying what happened a smile grew across my face.

“Enough about me! What happened to you?”

“What didn’t happen to me?” she trilled. “Daesung is even more incredible than I thought. He’s so friendly and hilarious. We talked for a while before LEE SEUNG GI SHOWED UP!”

“I KNOW!!! They came to get me! The first thing he said after hello, was “where’s Paije” I tried to imitate his voice, but it didn’t come out as cool as when he said it.

“Really?” Awe was smeared across her face. “Why?”

“Paije! He obviously really likes you” I said pointing out the obvious.

“What?” she choked. “There is absolutely no way the wonderfully talented Lee Seung Gi is interested in me” she stated as I looked at her denial in disbelief.

“Whatevs.”

“By the way you were great with Taeyang” she smiled heading over to her closet and pulling out a pair of dark jeans and a loose off the shoulder peach top. “That was all Kendrick could talk about.”

“Huh?”

“Kendrick…he pretty much talked about you the whole night. When you didn’t enter in with us he was asking a lot about you, like why you weren’t with us. He almost went back to the hotel so you wouldn’t be alone.”

“What?” I asked starting to feel a little guilty at the way I treated him last night.

“Yea…he can be sweet when he wants too.”

“I didn’t think he cared” I squeaked.

“Madison is absolutely right, you're becoming popular. With him and the idols. The best part is you’re dragging me along too” she smiled.

 “I’m not doing anything” I tried to say innocently but when Paije gave me a look we both busted out in laughter. “But seriously I’m not! I’m just being myself.”

“Yea I know…who knew everyone would love it so much. But tell me what happened to you; you just left-”

“I had to get outta there. After singing with Taeyang, T.O.P led me back to my seat next to Kim Hyun Joong.  Hyun Joong kept telling me how good I sounded while as T.O.P kept making fun of me. So after I told him that I’m going to find a new bias-“

“YOU TOLD THAT TO TOP!!!” She was yelling.

I winced. “Yes….but Paije! He was being a totally jerk calling me a wannabe fan because I was being polite to Hyun Joong and I seriously felt myself starting to cry. I had to get outta there in fear that Hyun Joong might fight with T.O.P.-”

“Wait why would they fight?”

“I don’t know, but it seems they both don’t like each other.” I sighed. “Anyway I left to go to a McDonalds I passed on the way to get fries-”

“McDonalds? Wow he must’ve been mean”  

 “But GD ended up there and we talked for a while before T.O.P showed up. And then we went to the club and I danced with Hyun Joong at the end and-”

                We were interrupted by a knock on the door.

“Good Morning” Sim Sunbae bowed.

“Morning” we said together.

“Breakfast is being prepared on the rooftop garden.”

“Okay we’ll go up in a minute” Paije answered as he nodded leaving.

                I went to the bathroom to take a shower. The water felt good against my skin; I could feel it relaxing my muscles. I had no idea I was this tense, but with Madison this morning and all that happened last night it’s no wonder I was tight. When I finished I picked out a cute sun dress and flats and put them on quickly before I twisted my hair into a messy bun. In no time at all Paije and I were walking out of the door; we didn’t even bother yelling the fact that we were going to breakfast. The elevator ride up to the rooftop garden picked up some strange looking people, but for the most part it was a quiet ride. When we reached the rooftop an elaborate table was spread before us. All different types of foods were stretched out along the buffet. I went to step in line with Paije in front of me, before I could even reach a pristine white plate one was in front of my face. It was Kendrick. His body posture was stiff making the situation awkward.

“Thanks” I tried to smile but I think it came out more of a wince.

                He didn’t say anything after I grabbed the plate, he just moved down the line of the table. After I filled my plate with different dishes from the different countries I saw that he was sitting alone at a circular table. I looked at Paije and she caught on immediately as we both headed over to keep him company. Paije greeted him with a smile and I tried to, but it felt weird. I felt in trouble; and even though I owed Madison nothing I felt guilty for sitting next to him. It meant nothing to me, but it would mean something to her.

“We’re in so deep” I said to Paije with a laugh.

“You keep saying that?” Kendrick said agitated. “Will you please explain what you're talking about?”

“You’ll see in about three seconds” Paije smiled.  

                And right on time Madison walked in with Rachel scanning the rooftop garden for Kendrick. I laughed out loud a little louder than polite and then by the time I tried to catch it, it was pointless. Madison’s eyes bugged out of her head and she was over to the table in no time.

“You! Move Now!”

“Oh come on! It’s just a seat” I smiled.

“Get up!” She yelled starting to make a scene. Other V.I.P’s were starting to look and I knew it would only be a matter of time before an executive was going to come over and kick all of us out.

“If I move, can you shut up?! I don’t want to get kicked out over a seat.” I glared.

“Yes” she said quietly confident.

                I slid my chair out to get up but for some reason I couldn’t push it back. I kept trying and then when I went to slide out of the seat, Kendrick grabbed my wrist making it impossible for me to leave. The whole table zoned in on my arm trapped in his hand. I even tried yanking my arm away but he was really strong.

“Let me go” I said obviously still yanking my arm back and forth in his grasp.

“Sit down” he answered calmly.

“What?” Madison shrieked as I looked innocently at him.

“Sit down” he enunciated towards her. “You’re going to sit down,” he said to me and then swiftly jerked his head to her and said “And you’re going to sit down and shut up.”

                Surprisingly we both did as he commanded. When I sat down he let me go and returned to his breakfast. I looked at him bewildered. Paije was laughing really hard but she somehow managed to pass it off as a coughing spell. Madison began to whimper, using the power of her big green eyes to look crushed.

“If you're gonna cry, get up and leave” he said coldly.

                She kept sniffling while Rachel rubbed her back trying to offer some comfort. We ate in the hushed sounds of other people talking for a few minutes before Kim Mi-Hi walked in with her army of suits.

“Good Morning V.I.P’s” she smiled when she reached the clear podium with microphone. “On your schedules, you will see that we have scheduled the photo-shoot for everyone the day after tomorrow. The following day will be your first audition rehearsal. This is open only to the actual winners; your guests will rejoin you later. Today is a free day. You may use this time to explore Seoul or get accustomed to the YG Building.”

                At that a ripple of whispers erupted in the garden.

“IF,” she warned. “you decide to visit the YG Building, please…be respectful to the artists. No Distractions will be tolerated and you will be escorted back to the hotel.”

                Kim Mi-Hi was a small woman no more than in her mid-thirties, but the authority she contained was worthy of any drill sergeant. She had me shivering in my shoes at the mere thought of being taken away from the YG Building. We were getting an opportunity to explore and use one of the most state-of-the-art recording studios in the world.

“In your travel packets you will find two passes. One will contain the winner’s picture the other will read guest. Do not lose these; this is how we will know you are allowed to be here. And finally if you decide to explore Seoul, I encourage you to do so however please remain safe. Thank you” she bowed.

“We’re going to the YG Building!” I squealed writhing with joy in my seat.

“I know!!!!” Paije sighed. “Maybe we should go so you can practice”

“You think?”

“Your dancing is really good, you shouldn’t over do it” Kendrick spoke looking directly at me, captivating me with his eyes once again. “Why don’t you come with me and see Seoul”

“Uhm” I started but I couldn’t finish. For some reason I really wanted to go with him. Ughh! Why did I have to be such a er for a handsome face and gorgeous eyes?!

“It doesn’t have to be a date; we can explore it together.”

                Unintentionally I could feel the table looking at me waiting for an answer, especially Madison. Without even looking at her I could tell that she was holding her breath waiting for me to talk. So I took in a deep breath before beginning.

“I’m sure it’d be nice, however my main focus has to be getting into this music video. I need to stay focused” I answered determined.

“You're definitely going to get in, they’d be crazy not to” he flashed a smile.

“I need to practice and no amount of flattery is going to change my mind” I smiled back easily.

“Let’s make a bet then?”

“A bet?”  I was totally intrigued.

“If you get into the music video, then we’ll go out” he smiled hunching up his shoulders before relaxing again.     

“Oh come on! You know I’m gonna try my hardest to get in. It’s not fair for you to pick a side where I wanna win too? I don’t know” I got up from the seat with my plate in hand.

“Wait a minute, don’t you see? This is why we need to hang out” he added trying to catch up to me.

“How do you figure?” I asked pushing the button for the elevator.

“Back at the table, you could’ve just said no. Instead you gave me another excuse, which obviously means I’m right” he smiled stepping easily into the elevator before me. 

“Right about what?” I laughed.

“You want to go with me”

                I couldn’t talk. Partly because he was about 1/8 correct about me wanting to go with him, but the other 7/8 felt really guilty about how I treated him at the club. It wouldn’t have hurt to dance one dance with him; after all I did with pretty much everyone else.

“And don’t worry about Madison, she won’t seek revenge.”

                He saw my facial expression and allowed his blue eyes to lighten up.

“I promise” he said crossing his heart. “She won’t do anything.”

“Really?” I scoffed rolling my eyes.

“Just because you can see through my charm, doesn’t mean she can” he smirked confidently.

“We’ll see” I laughed before stepping off the elevator onto my floor.

                When I reached the room, I pulled out a pair of grey sweat pants and a black sweatshirt that I cut to hang loosely off my shoulder. I put on a solid camisole underneath and grabbed my laptop and iPod.  I texted Paije telling her that I was heading to the YG Building. I searched my travel packet until I found two bright yellow passes; I took the one with my picture and hid hers in a pocket in her purse. The black letters on the back of the pass read I.V.I.P with an ID code number and I immediately found the song Black & Yellow: V.I.P Edition by xRANTSOM and I started rapping the lyrics waving the tiny card in the air. I stuck it in my miniature wallet that held my other ID and stuffed into my sweat pants pocket. I danced down the hallway to the same song all of the way until I saw a group of V.I.P’s heading to the YG Building. I followed the group down the streets bobbing my head to the music. The awkwardly shaped building seemed more imaginary than real, especially when we entered. I felt my lungs collapse in reverence. In the lobby of the building it was quiet; I guess Papa YG was no joke about distractions. All I needed was a small quiet practice room where I could work on dance steps. I didn’t need to explore the building to try and see what idols I could meet, I needed to remain focus. I went to the building map in the corner of the room near a window while the group left with a tour guide. I searched for words like “practice” or “rehearsal” but I gave up in a few minutes. When I went to the front desk I decided it was better to speak English instead of confusing us both in my Korean. I should’ve waited for Paije, her Korean was incredible enough to speak with a local and pass, while mine could maybe pass the first grade.

“Hi” I smiled bowing.

                The receptionist smiled back.

“Practice” I said dancing around like 2NE1 and singing Follow Me and then showing him my I.V.I.P card.

“Oh…수정(SuJeong)” he smiled. “낮은수준(naj-eun sujun)” he pointed his hands to indicate down. 

“감사합니다(gamsahabnida)” I nodded and bowed.

                I knew enough to know to head downstairs and with my adventurous attitude I knew I’d find it eventually. I took the elevator and in no time I was in the lower level of the building. I glanced around trying to find another map and on my way I passed the gym where I saw a few people working out. I bowed and kept walking before I ran into the recording booth station. I could hear people talking and then I made a mistake by looking in the booth window. Not the recording part, but the part where all of the producers sit listening to the track. I felt my heart stop…start…stop…and restart again. Three pairs of eyes were looking at me while I was looking at them. I smiled sheepishly before running down the hallway. For some reason I felt myself going slow, like no matter how much I pushed myself I couldn’t go any faster. Fortunately for me, I ran into a human wall which had arms that held me upright.

“Oh!” I screamed. “I didn’t see-”

“Ow” T.O.P said sarcastically slow. “Watch where you're going?”

“Joesonghabnida Oppa” I bowed still noticing the fact that he was still holding me.

                He realized it too and let me go in an instant.

“Why are you down here?”

“I came to practice” I answered humbly.

“Practice what? The audition isn’t for a couple of weeks, and you have nothing to practice.”

“Even so-”

“Why bother? You're not going to get it” he laughed.

“Why not oppa?!” I shrieked in fear.

“Because unlike Hyun Joong, I don’t think you're incredible.”

                I was confused and I’m sure my face showed it. At first I was thrilled at the mention of Kim Hyun Joong, and then I was ecstatic when he said Hyun Joong thought I was incredible. But then the part about he said that he, himself didn’t think that I was. But then I became happy again at the fact that Hyun Joong did. I smiled at him and started walking away down a hall.

“Are you deaf? I said you're awful! You're not going to make the video because I say so! Hey”

                It was official…T.O.P was a hater. Why? I don’t know, but I did know that I had to be amazing at this audition just to prove him wrong. Even if I didn’t get a spot, I would just have to dance well enough to shut him up. I found the practice rooms and almost all of them we’re occupied. I took out my iPod and turned it to Hip Song by Rain. The hallway had enough space I could practice in it until an available room opened up. I knew the choreography to a lot of K-pop videos, so I just used this one as a warm-up; especially it got the hip area loose. When I turned it to 2NE1’s I Am The Best I let my hair down allowing it to spread across my shoulders. I tried to be as flirtatious and coy as possible with the movements. I was really getting into it until I turned around to see a security camera panning down to get a closer look at my face. I smiled uncertain and bowed before waving at the people watching on the other side. Hopefully the security guards got a good laugh and wouldn’t be bored for the entire day. I sat down at the foot of a door and waited patiently. Every now and then someone would pass me but for the longest time no one would open up, and then all of a sudden a door popped open with the Kwon Twins stepping out. They grinned at me before disappearing out of sight. I stepped into a large room filled with floor length mirrors along all of the walls. The hard-wood floors were shiny with their new-waxed look and there was an expensive looking stereo in one of the walls. I did a small powwow dance in the room silently squealing from happiness. I plugged my iPod into the speakers and turned it to Magic by Seungri. It sounded like the most playful song on my iPod, the perfect chance for me to work on playing hard to get and actually being flirtatiously y. Time was flying by faster than I knew it, I knew I had spent a few hours here but it didn’t feel like work. I was just dancing to the music, making up my own steps and doing what felt right before I was interrupted.

“You're using my song” Seungri noticed at the doorway of the room.

                I immediately stopped dancing and almost fell over. If I could’ve blush I would’ve, I already felt my face growing warm from shock and embarrassment.

“So you sing, and you dance…is there anything you can’t do?”

 “Breathe” I laughed which broke a smile across his face.

He stepped towards me coming closer. “You're breathing now” he added.

                A fresh shiver was being sent down my back.

“With difficulty” I admitted.

“Why?” He was grinning, his adorable panda eyes taking full advantage of my attention.

“Seungri-oppa,” I began. “You are fantastic, and when I remember that I become” my hands waved around in fast circles to try and imitate what they all did to me.

“You think I’m fantastic” he asked clearly flattered.

“Impossible…she didn’t faint” T.O.P appeared out of nowhere smiling.

                I could feel my face tighten and I knew I had to leave. I was smart enough to take out my cell phone in order to make up an excuse.

“I have to go” I said waving my cell phone.

“No you don’t” T.O.P said flatly.

“It’s really late and I of have to-" I said starting to walk over to the stereo.

“Wait…can you show me again?” Seungri asked sliding in front of me.

“Show what?”

“The steps” he stated.

“Are you being serious?” T.O.P questioned. “What for?”

“I liked it” he smiled back at me allowing my stomach to take another rollercoaster ride. “Have you come up with anything else?”

“Uhm-”

“She said she had to leave and can’t you see she’s a waste?” He said looking me over. “The girl can barely talk-”

“Yea…but she can move” his eyes smiled at me as he checked me out.

                This was incredible!!! I was being checked out by two idols in the same room, on the same day, in the exact same moment. My insides were doing back-flips and my head started to spin. How lucky was I? And I automatically knew T.O.P saw the way Seungri looked at me. This was getting way too intense, so I decided to leave no matter what.

“Oppa”

“What?” T.O.P snapped at me.

“Sorry-”

“It’s about time you apologized” he added.

“I meant Seungri” I bowed.  “Sorry, I really must be leaving.”

“Please stay” he pleaded unashamed.

“Another time” I answered before bowing to each of them. I grabbed my stuff as quickly as possible and walked out calmly from the practice room before running towards the elevator doors. I pushed the button praying for God to show me where the stairs were.

“Hey!” T.O.P called.

                It was short and piercing. I knew that voice could strike me down with the right words, but somehow I was able to stay relaxed. I focused on the doors wishing they would open faster.

“Why don’t you notice me?” he shouted at me when I felt that he was directly behind me.

                He had to be kidding. Notice him?! It was all I could do to keep from jumping up and down at the mere fact that I was less than a few feet away from him. Silence at this point was my best friend. I knew sight was an enemy; if I looked at him I knew my composure would be lost and I couldn’t afford for that to happen again.

“Like now! Your eyes are shut!” he yelled.

                He was mad, and automatically I started laughing. I tried to stop but I couldn’t. How ridiculous was I being? He was absolutely right about having control over me and I knew if I looked at him he would’ve won. The game and the prize didn’t matter, but I knew in just the short time I knew him that the winner would be the most important.

“Eh! What’s so funny?” he almost whined like a two year old having a tantrum.

“Me” I laughed again.

“What?”he said in Korean with all traces of English flying out the window.

 “Me…I make myself laugh.” 

                The doors of the elevator had finally opened and I stepped in not expecting him to follow me in. I took a greedy look at his flawless face before he frowned before getting in. He was in the simplest outfit I had ever seen him wear. I sweater cap with a regular t-shirt and a pair of baggy jeans. Almost simple, his sneakers were the flashiest pair of shoes I had ever seen, and I automatically knew this was classic T.O.P. He grumbled in Korean which made me smile even more, which seemed to upset him even more.

“I’m trying to act cool, and you think I don’t care…that’s why I’m laughing.” I smiled at him while he pouted.
 “I like you better when you're passed out” he said coldly.

“I like you better when I’m passed out too” I answered back just as cold.

                His head whipped around to glare at me. Oh My Lord, that glare. I suddenly felt like I was the actress in his As If Nothing’s Wrong music video. That glare sent my organs slamming to the front once again. If he only truly knew how fixed on him I really was. A determined look was on my face with a slight hint of a glare until I got a cute melody from my cell phone. I flipped it open and read the text message.

                                                Devon, How are you?

                                                Fine and you? Who is this? lol

                                                Hyun Joong lol Good, how was your day?

                                                Hyun Joong!!! Lol it just got better J

Lol good. What are you doing?

“You see!!! Right now you should be praying to God that this elevator gets stuck, but instead you're texting? It’s probably your boyfriend back home am I right?” he hedged.

“Boyfriend?! No” I protested. “Well at least not yet” I sang and the thought.

I could feel T.O.P’s eyes on me as the goofy grin spread across my face.

“Don’t tell me, it’s that British guy” he scoffed.

“What British guy?” I asked taken aback. I wasn’t expecting that one.

“The one at the club. He asked you to-”

“You heard that?!”

“So he’s the one on the phone” he accused. “That’s why you won’t tell me!” he laughed harsh.

“No!” I protested. “I don’t even like him!”

“So who are you talking to?” He cocked his left eyebrow to the left causing my heart to flutter.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you” I admitted as he stared intently at me. “Kim Hyun Joong” I confessed after a few seconds.

 He rolled his eyes. “What would Hyun Joong want with a nobody like you?”

“I don’t know!” I hollered in laughter. “I’d wish he’d tell me.”

“You really know how to insult a person. At the club, it wasn’t enough that you had to turn down your bias, but then rub it in my face with another idol. You couldn’t stop at my brothers, you had to find someone else. You're really something”

                My mouth gaped open as my eyes grew bigger.

“You make that face every time I see you. Get a new one!” He yelled at me before reaching the floor and stepping out.

                It must have taken me a good ten minutes to reassess myself before getting out of the elevator. Every action I did felt mechanical. Somehow subconsciously I had found myself back at the hotel with Paije yelling at me shaking me fiercely.

“Snap out of it!!!” she pushed harder.

“What?”

“Devon! Devon! C’mon!!!”

                I snapped myself back into reality and in no time I was making coherent sentences.

“What happened at YG?”

                I wanted to say, but nothing came out.

“I’m going to take a shower and go to bed.” The words felt weird with me saying them.

“Yea you must be tired, you spent most of the day practicing before you spent an hour staring at space.” She laughed. “I’m sure you’ll tell me about it tomorrow…plus we need our beauty rest for the photo shoot.”

“The photo-shoot is tomorrow?!” I screamed.

“Yea, really early in the morning. We should probably get to bed soon.”

“Night.”

                I fell asleep with a glorious dream of me dancing at the club with Hyun Joong. I really knew it was a dream because it had a fuzzy frame around the edges and every now and then a fairy would fly over us sprinkling fairy dust and our feet would leave the ground as we danced in the air. Paije was the one to wake me up this time. It was still dark outside which meant that it had to be really early. I hopped out of the bed over to the dresser with my package materials and pulled out today’s schedule. Photo-shoot instructions were printed on today’s part.

                        V.I.P,

                Come in comfortable clothing with a clean fresh face. Do not apply make-up. The vans will leave        

                At 4:30am so you will be at the studio by 5:00am.

                Paije and I did as the instructions told us. We showered and dressed in leggings and a big t-shirt. We pulled our hair into buns and ponytails before getting on our sneakers to head downstairs to the lobby. When we saw Sim Sunbae we stood over by him and waited for the others to come down. Kendrick and Egan came down looking sleepier than ever rubbing sleep crystals from their eyes before going over to stand next to their chaperone. Rachel came over to us after smiling sheepishly to Egan with Madison dressed in a black hoodie with matching black sweats covering her face.

“What’s wrong with her?” I asked Rachel before Madison reached us.

“Make-up, she thinks she’s hideous without it.”  

                We rolled our eyes as Sim Sunbae escorted us outside into the nearest van. It was by the grace of God that I was placed next to Paije and Aaina when we were seated with Kendrick sitting diagonally from me next to Madison and Egan. Madison rested comfortably on his shoulder as Kendrick watched disgusted. Aaina stifled a laugh that caused Kendrick to look at her with a glare before winking at her before smiling himself. He looked at me with that smile and I smiled back knowing that the three of us were sharing a private joke. Everyone was asleep for the van ride, even Sim Sunbae allowed a slight snore to part his lips as we drove out of the jungle of buildings and small shops. We reached a building that looked like a large warehouse and my eyes brightened at the site. The van shut off quietly and I nudged a sleeping Paije with my elbow as I woke Aaina up gently as she drooled on my arm. Sim Sunbae woke up and opened the door and allowed us to get out. We walked through the gate and there were different props being pushed around as we walked through the different sets. Sim Sunbae led us over to the make-up and hair stations. I bowed and greeted my make-up artist. She was a small woman who didn’t look much older than us. She sat me down at her cluttered station filled with make-up brushes and powders. I looked at the mirror in front of me touching my face wondering how I was going to look when they were finished. She looked at me from head to toe and flipped open her notebook as two executives came over and spoke to her rapidly in Korean. They motioned for me to take down my hair and as soon as I did they started running their fingers through it playfully experimenting with strange styles. A man stepped over to me and began washing my hands and filing my nails. As soon as the executives left the small woman began working on my hair. She plugged in a straightner and started brushing the curly tangles from my hair as the man worked over my hands. I looked at Paije who was getting the same treatment and she threw a smile at me. I smiled at the people working on me and stayed relaxed sitting in the chair allowing these strangers to work over me. In no time at all the man had given me a perfectly fresh French manicure and began applying a base coat of sugar brown make-up to my face. He brought out the bronzer and blush and began working on my cheeks, determined to make my face less shiny. He gave me a delicate smokey shadow and an adorably seductive kitten eye for eyeliner. My face had golden hints depending on how I turned my head. When I looked in the mirror at my face I didn’t believe what I saw. My hair was longer and straighter compared to the usual waves that I wore. They gave me a huge swoop bang that made my usually round face look more angular. My lips were fuller than normal and my brown eyes looked even bigger with the two coats of mascara than extended my eyelashes. I looked like a supermodel, a miniature version of Tyra Banks. I laughed in the mirror as the man and woman looked at me hesitantly. I grinned really big at them and nodded and I saw them sigh in great relief.  Sim Sunbae directed me to the stylist. I checked out the clothes on the rack and they were all white. YES! The theme was white! That shouldn’t have been such a big surprise because everyone knows that BIGBANG looks good in solid classic colors like black and white. The stylist gave me a white dress and a pair of silver slip on heels to try on. It was heart shaped at the top with intricate beading around the waist; it gave a little poof near the bottom with a thin lace pattern at the end. This dress seemed to pretty to put on and when I looked in the mirror at myself I felt like a fairy princess. The stylist nodded his approval and directed me toward the photo-shoot director. When the director met me we both nodded to each other before he had me turn around so she could take a final glance. When I looked at the set it seemed appropriate for my dress. The set was split into thirds. One third looked like BIGBANG’s Beautiful Hangover,  another like GD & T.O.P’s Baby Goodnight and 2NE1’s It Hurts Minus the crazy hair and outfits. BIGBANG were already on the set laughing with each other and fooling around until the director called Daesung over so he could start taking his solo shots. An executive was walking around asking people different questions, but when he got over to me he told me to stand under a bright yellow sign nearest to the set. The rectangular area was marked with white tape and I comfortably stood in the box waiting for others to join me. As soon as I stood underneath I could feel the eyes watching me and the V.I.P’s from Korea confirmed it with laughs and glares, but I tried to ignore it. Kendrick eventually came over to stand near me in a larger box completely blocked off. He looked really good in a simple white sweater and white pants. His hair seemed a cut a little shorter but when he jerked his head it reminded me of Hyun Joong in Boys Over Flowers. He lazily stuffed his hands in his pockets before he noticed that I was watching him. He nodded nonchalantly.

“Do you know what we’re doing?” I mouthed but all I got was a confused look back.

                It was obvious he couldn’t hear me and there was no one else in my rectangle that I could ask so I walked over to him.

“I was asking to see if you knew what we were doing”

“Oh…I don’t” he chuckled.

“Okay” I said throwing him a smile.

                We stood in silence for a little while until I caught him staring at me.

“What?” I asked finally calling him out on it. “Is there something wrong?”

 “No!” He said a little too loudly allowing a small blush to circle his cheeks.

“Good?”

He started stuttering. “You look…you…really. You look really nice” he finally got out.

“Oh” I said being taken off guard. “Thank you” I added looking at my shoes.

                All of a sudden a strong force was dragging me away from Kendrick. My face looked flustered as I unwillingly left his side. I looked up to see T.O.P dragging me back to the marked out rectangle.

“Why did you do that?” I protested.

“You're not standing in your area” he answered flatly.

“Area?”

“You…stand…here.”

                He placed me directly under the sign.

“Why am I the only one standing here?”

“I’m still your bias”

                I glared but God knows he spoke nothing but the truth. He smirked.

“Therefore…you stay here.”
                He walked away alienating me from the rest of the group. Everywhere I looked there were at least twenty people standing under five other signs and here I was alone. Wait a minute…there were five other signs, why was I standing underneath a sixth?

“Sim Sunbae!” I called to him and he came immediately.

“Yes Miss Devon.”

“Why am I here alone” I whined. “Everyone else has someone in their group and there are six signs for only 5 members-”

“According to the sign, T.O.P reserved this spot for you.”

“Huh?”

“The signs says…

“Devon Ashford. Area for fainting and passing out when I smile or pose. She must stay here in case of emergencies. Choi Seung Hyun.”

                Sim Sunbae finished reading and a new wave of embarrassment mixed with surprise topped with flattery washed over me. No wonder the Korean V.I.P’s were laughing and glaring at me. Those who laughed obviously had heard about my fainting and those who glared we’re probably jealous that I got special treatment from him. Before I could respond the director called me over.

“I need you to sit over here” she told me. “Smile for me?”

And I did. “Pretty.”

                I was placed propped on the armrest of a white couch where Daesung was perched sitting upright smiling at me.

“Morning Oppa” I bowed.

“Devon?” he hesitated, but smiled wider when I nodded.

“I didn’t think you’d remember?”

“I don’t think I’ll have trouble after T.O.P-hyun’s joke” he pointed at the sign with a hard chuckle.

                I smacked my face and groaned which caused him to laugh harder.   

“Don’t…you’ll ruin your make-up and you look pretty.”

                I pouted from embarrassment for a few minutes until the cameras started flashing. I don’t know what came over me but I was “smizing” better than Tyra Banks. I was totally flirting with the camera and I knew I was working it. Daesung was incredible to work with, especially with his amazing iness oozing out from everywhere. I swear it had to be the fact that he wasn’t my bias was the reason we worked so well together. After a few frames they switched me to Taeyang who was over in the 2NE1 look-a-like set up.

“Devon” he bowed. “Let’s do this!” he said enthusiastically.

                Working with him too was fairly easy as well. They placed me behind him and I was supposed to have an fascinated look on my face, which like I said was easy to do. He high fived me when it was time for me to swap to the next member. Seungri was standing in the middle of a floor with a few other girls draped around him. I found a spot next to him, and even though he was supposed to be focusing on each of us he always stared at me a little too long or smiled too often with me. I felt his arm snake around my waist when it was time to take a group shot and securely anchor it there until it was time for me to switch. I smiled at him and went to G-Dragon’s set. He smiled at me which caused an automatic reaction for me to smile back. All of the other shoots I had to be serious but his was totally light and happy. All of us in the shot we’re grinning and laughing. I think it was just GD’s personality, he made us feel warm and bubbly. I was still smiling when I had to go to T.O.P’s station. He was elegantly sitting in a chair with his legs crossed. I looked around for the others to join us in the shot but no one came.

“It’s just us” he said guessing at my expression.

                I huffed and joined him on the set.

“Am I really that awful?” he asked trying his hardest not to smile.

                I didn’t answer, I stood in an angle behind the chair so the photographer could take a profile shoot to start. Each flash of the camera took longer than the other. On the fourth flash T.O.P got up and directed me to sit in the chair. I looked at the camera trying to make my eyes brood like his as he stood behind, and then in a few more frames he sat on the armrest of the chair. I crossed my hands to keep from bumping into him. When the photo-shoot was over I bowed to the staff and to him before walking over to the refreshment table. I grabbed a bottle of water and found Sim Sunbae.

“Are we done Sim Sunbae?”

“If you’ve taken pictures with all of the members then you can wait for the group shot.”

“Okay. I’m going to sit over there” I said pointing to a few chairs in a corner as far as possible from the set.

                It wasn’t long before T.O.P found me and sighed in relief.

“Hey!” he asked gruff. “Why aren’t you in your spot?”

 “Why do I have to stay there? I’ve finished shooting.”

“You have to stay where I can see you” he argued.

I huffed. “I’m not going to faint again, so you can stop trying to make it happen.”

“Just in case” he smiled.

“T.O.P oppa. You're trying to get me killed!”

“What?”

“I can’t get special treatment from you; what about other fans? They need your attention too.”

 “If you're alone and I can’t see you, someone’s going to come over.”

                He took me by the wrist and dragged me back to the spot he put me in before.

“Stand here” he commanded.

“What if I need to sit? My feet will hurt in these shoes”

                He stared at my long legs a little longer than necessary.

“Take them off” he answered turning on his heels.

                I groaned at his back. I couldn’t believe he ordered me to do this. On top of that, I couldn’t believe I actually was doing it. I started grumbling to myself repeating the words “if it was anyone but T.O.P” and Taeyang came over with a chair. I thanked him as I sat down.

“He likes keeping you around” he smiled.

“I don’t get why?” I sulked.

“You're funny, happy, and loyal. You're interesting to talk too and when we do something little you get so worked up. It’s cute” he added.

“But every other person here would do that too-”

“You're also talented, and attractive. My point is, you stick out and we like it.”

“How can anyone say I’m attractive with BIGBANG standing in the same room?! You all look perfect” I grinned admiringly.

“Plus, you’re the only person here who fainted over him. He was so impressed with himself that he had a fan like you.” Taeyang rolled his eyes. “It’s all he could talk about for hours.”

“I didn’t mean too” I whined with a laugh. “Wait! He talked about it afterwards?!”

“Oh yea” he laughed. “I made a pretty girl faint, no one’s ever fainted for me. She didn’t even see me and she fainted. She must like me a lot” he said imitating him perfectly. “And then at the club-”

“The club?”

“Yea.”

“What did he say?”

“He pretty much threw a tantrum. Why would she dance with dongsaeng and not me? Ahhhhh”Taeyang laughed.

“Taeyang” T.O.P’s voice cut through. “They want you” he was glaring as Taeyang got up to leave.

“Fighting” Taeyang said to me and I replied “Fighting.”

                They called us all over to take the group shot and in a few clicks it was taken. Kim Mi-Hi walked out and grabbed our attention immediately as BIGBANG stood next to her.

“As another generous gift from YG and BIGBANG, the outfits you are wearing are yours to keep” she smiled. “Please, enjoy the rest of your day and we will see you in one weeks time. Be mindful of your audition rehearsals and good luck.”

                I followed Sim Sunbae to the van, but before I could go T.O.P grabbed my hand putting a piece of folded paper into it. Before he left he gave me a smirk strutting away victorious. I held on to that scrap of paper for dear life hardly waiting until I got into the van to read it. We sat in the same seats as before and I carefully unfolded it to find his scribbled writing.