Chanyeol got up sluggishly from his bed and stretched out his arms.  With his hair still a mess, he reached for the clock.  It read 7:36AM.  “Ha!” He scoffed, couldn’t believe that he already developed a habit of sleeping for only around six hours at most even on one of his rare day offs.

            He noticed several of the camera recording lights were not even .  He assumed that there was no schedule for filming Roommate today either.  At this newly discovered prospect, he smiled. ‘Hm…I should pay noona a visit, finish up the melody composition, and then spend the rest of the day watching TV.’ He was contemplating seriously until he heard a snore from his neighbour, Sungwoo.  ‘Breakfast first would be nice.’  He decided to make breakfast for his roommates.

            However, when he stepped out of his room, he could already smell a mild ginger aroma.  He stopped in track just before the staircase.  His stomach suddenly felt a bit nauseated despite the lovely gingerly scent that lingered in the air.  ‘It can’t be her again, right?’ He was apprehensive of the new roommate, Sojin.

            Two weeks have passed since Sojin moved in and she seemed to be blending in nicely with the rest of the roommates.  Initially, Chanyeol thought she sought his company more frequently than others because they were the same age.  However, it quickly became apparent, to him at least, that it did not seem to be the case.

            “Chanyeolie!” Sojin called out.

            “Oh hey.” He just finished putting on his shoes.

            “I know you have a busy schedule today, but you should still eat properly.” She said this as she stuffed a bag in his hands.

            “Huh?  What is this?” He peeked inside the bag.

            “It’s your lunch.” She responded. “Well, hope you enjoy!”

            “T-thanks.” Then he pulled himself together from the astonishment. “I’ll share it with the EXO members.”

            Later on he realized that he was the only one that she was giving such a treatment.  As they were roommates, it was obvious that it would be more beneficial to divert from what might become a mess of awkwardness.  Though, he had no idea how to approach Sojin about this.  After all, whether his instinct about her being interested in him was correct or not, the outcome would still be unbearable for a girl.  For now, all he could do was to keep his distance as much as possible.

            “Ah, such a delicate situation…” He rubbed the bridge of his nose.

            “ ‘Morning Oppa!”

            He whirled around and jumped. “Omo! It’s only you, Gayeon…”

            Gayeon was dumbfounded at his reaction and asked, “You’re alright?”

            “Yes…” He grinned, but it could hardly convince anyone.  “Are you going somewhere?” He asked, wanting to change the topic as quickly as possible.

            Gayeon was dressed in a black tracksuit and a backpack carried over one of her shoulders.

            “Yep, I’m heading over to the gym today.” At the mention of the gym, her face broke into a smile naturally.

            A sudden idea flashed in his mind.  “Do you mind if I tag along today?”

            “What?” She was caught completely off guard.  She and Chanyeol usually got along well, but she never thought that he was interested in spending time with her outside of Roommate, let alone with her at a gym.

            “What? Am I not welcomed?”  He joked.

            “No, of course you’re welcome anytime…it’s just kinda of sudden…Why Oppa?”

            “Just curious about how our future MMA champ trains.” He replied sincerely.  He and his fellow EXO members have been curious for a while.

            She adjusted her cap, “Sure, but you’re not going to be just watching right?”

            “Of course not.  I hope to learn a few techniques too.”

            “Okay, then hope you’re prepared.” She smirked before heading downstairs.

            ‘Was that a smirk?’ He thought his eyes played trick on him.  He began to wonder if he should just bail out now.

            “Sojin eonni,” Gayeon called out when they were ready to head out.  “We’re leaving now.”

           Chanyeol’s head shot up at the name.  His suspicion of who prepared this morning’s breakfast was confirmed.

            “Alright, have fun training—” Sojin walked out from the kitchen. “Oh Chanyeolie, you’re leaving too?  You didn’t eat breakfast yet.”

            “I’m heading to the gym with Gayeon.” He replied.

            “Oh then—”

            “Gayeon, didn’t you say we’re running late?” He cut Sojin off, fearing what she might suggest next. “Let’s hurry! Bye!” He swiftly grabbed Gayeon by the wrist and rushed out of the house, leaving the young fighter no time to react.

            When the door closed, a darken expression of a maiden was left behind.

            He knew it was ill-mannered, but he was determined the line had to be drew before unnecessary misunderstandings escalated.

            “Oppa…”

            “Yea?” He responded rather absentmindedly.

            “Where are you planning to drag me to?”

            “Huh?” Then he realized that he was still holding onto her wrist.  Flustered, he quickly let go and apologized.

            “Alright, ‘fess up.” Once her wrist was freed, she crossed her arms and looked right into his eyes. “What’s going on here?”

          Trying to buy time for an excuse, he pretended to yawn and stretched his arms, “Such a beautiful morning—” His voice trailed off when he saw a rustic store sign just a block up ahead.  His face brightened up.  He held her shoulders and turned her toward the direction of the sign.  He pointed, “You see that bakery up ahead?”

            “Yes…” She hesitated, wondering where he was going with this.

            “This bakery is really good.  I was worried that there would be a long line up.  But I guess we’re lucky that we’re the first ones here today.” He lied easily.  He was rather proud of his ability to think on his feet.

            “That was why you were in such a hurry.” She concluded, although she still found it a bit unbelievable.

            “That’s right!” He clapped his hands, quickly playing up from her assumption. “Come on, I’ll treat you before we hit the gym.”

            “No, it’s alright…I’m still on a diet.” The word ‘diet’ was becoming like venom on her tongue.

            “Oh yea, that’s right.” When the realization dawned on him, he felt guilty for suddenly dragging the poor girl into this situation for his convenience.

            Her eyes can’t help but wandered all over the display of freshly baked goods despite that she kept reminding herself that she was on a diet. “It all looks delicious…” Unconsciously, she gulped.  Her eyes travelled to the red bean paste bread that Chanyeol was holding as he paid the cashier.

            Chanyeol caught her staring with those puppy eyes that she, herself, probably didn’t realize she possessed at the moment.  He tried to hide his smile. “If you stared like that, I will feel burdened.”

            When she looked up to the owner of the voice, the spell from the food fairy was lifted.  Her face became all red when she apologized.  She took a few steps away from the store and focused her attention on the scenery of the street.  Just then, she felt a tap on her shoulder.  She turned around to find Chanyeol holding out half of the red bean paste bread for her.

            “This much won’t kill you.” He gestured the bread to her.

            His smile seemed truly angelic.  However, she felt as though she was falling into a devil’s trap.

            Seeing her hesitation, he ripped off a smaller piece and stuffed it into .

            A mild sweetness popped on the tips of her taste buds.  How she longed for a taste that was not bland.  She eyed Chanyeol before taking the rest of the half bread.  She had completely fallen into the temptation.  “I will keep this.”

            He chuckled at her surprisingly blunt action.

            “It’s good isn’t it?” He took a bite and even he could not believe his bluff about the quality of the bakery.

            She nodded. “But now I have to put in fifteen more minutes of training though…Oppa, you’re really awful.”

            He patted her on the head, “Alright, this oppa will train with you for thirty more minutes if he has to.”

            “Okay, I will hold you up on that.” She settled.

            “Oh yea, I’ll be heading over to Jejudo for a CF a couple of days from now.” He brought up the news as he took another bite of his breakfast.  “I remember your hometown is around that area, so let me know if there’s any souvenir you want.”

           She suddenly fell silent at the mention of her hometown.  It seemed just yesterday that she had left the place.  Everything had fallen apart when her father passed away.  She never knew how human lives could be so fragile until that moment.  Ironically, she found herself feel most alive inside a ring where victory was sought through threatening another’s life. ‘If there was one thing I want…’ Though, she wasn’t sure if she deserved it.  “Kimchi from the Lucky Sea convenience store…that is, if only you happened to stumbled on it.” She smiled, but there was a hint of sadness evident in her eyes.

            Her continued silence throughout the travel made him wondered just how much of a convenience store kimchi meant to her.  Suddenly, he thought she looked fragile and not as strong as she projected to be.

            When they got off the taxi, Gayeon opened her arms and exhaled a deep breath. “It’s good to be back.”

            Chanyeol was amazed how her mood brighten up so much as soon as they arrived.

            A fierce energy emitted from solely the exterior of the Road FC establishment just a few buildings away.  As they walked down the spacious hallway enclosed by layers of bricks, they could already hear the coach shouting directions over the intense training session.  Gayeon’s steps got lighter and more relaxed as she got closer to the training ground.

            In contrast, Chanyeol’s steps got heavier and he thought he could literally hear his heart drumming out loud.  He was unsure whether it was due to excitement or fear.  This place was a completely new world to him.  Although, he was amazed at the equipment hanging against the wall, some scenes from various mafia movies ran through his mind as soon as he saw some tough-looking men with tattoos placed on different areas of their bodies.

            “Dowon oppa!” Gayeon ran up to one of the men who was overseeing the training and gave him a big hug.

            “Oh, it’s our Gayeon! Have you been sticking to your diet?” The man called Dowon lifted up Gayeon effortlessly.  He looked to be in his mid-thirties with a crisp crew cut and sideburns.  When he put her down, he saw a handsome lad a couple feet away looking a bit uneasy.  He said to Gayeon. “Another guy?  When will you learn to bring in a lady friend?”

            “Can’t help it.  It just turned out that way.” She shrugged and rubbed the back of her neck.

            ‘Hm…he looked familiar.’ Dowon observed.

            “Chanyeolie oppa, let me introduce you my family.” She pulled Chanyeol close by the arm. “This is Dowon oppa — my nagging older brother.”

            “Annyonghasaseyo!” Chanyeol bowed respectfully.

            After the older man returned the greeting, he flicked Gayeon’s forehead, “Why you little, introduce properly next time.”

            “Ack, it hurts.” She had her palm against her forehead, soothing away the pain.

            Chanyeol broke into laughter at the scene. As she went on to introduce each member of her team, he started to feel more at ease.

            “This last one here is the maknae of the team, Kim Wooyoung.”

            “Noona, for the last time, it’s Han Wooyoung.”  The young man was clearly distressed by her memory.

            “Oops sorry, Han Wooyoung.” She laughed to cover her embarrassment. “Really though, Kim Wooyoung rolls off the tongue more easily.”

            “Hyung,” Wooyoung looked over to Chanyeol, “I sincerely hope you are not interested in Noona, because she would be a very clumsy and forgetful girlfriend.”

            Gayeon smacked her dongsaeng hard on the arm. “Yah! Are you still not awake?  Get in the ring in five minutes!”

            “See! So violent too!” Wooyoung immediately dodged the next attack from Gayeon and ran off to the other side of the gym.

            “Sorry, my dongsaeng is always spurring gibberish.” Gayeon apologized.  She should have foreseen trouble whenever she brought in a friend.  She covered her face. “Oh my god, this is so embarrassing.”

            Chanyeol only chuckled at the scene.  He had never seen this blunt side of her before.  The Gayeon he knew had always been a reserved girl who was always courteous to those around her at the Roommate house.  He was suddenly amused at the thought that it must have took her a lot of concentration to just sit still at the Roommate house.

            When they came out of the change room, Gayeon led Chanyeol to the equipment area for warm up.

            “Oppa, you warm up first.  I’ll be back.”  Before he responded, she already walked across the gym floor and shouted, “Kim Wooyoung, you think I’m joking?  Get in the ring now!”

            Chanyeol’s mouth hung open in shock.

            “Chanyeol-sshi, you’re an idol from SM Entertainment, right?” Dowon suddenly appeared from behind and put his arm over the younger lad’s shoulder.

            “Yes.” He answered nervously as he tried to keep his smile on.

            “That’s what I thought…” Dowon said this more to himself. “Then are you close with the Girl Generation members?”

            “Yes, they’re my sunbaes.” He nodded.

            “That’s great! Then you’re welcome here anytime.” The older man gave out a hearty laugh and patted approvingly on Chanyeol’s chest. “Okay, let’s see Gayeon in action, she’s not our Deadly Beauty for nothing.”

            Chanyeol didn’t see any other option and followed the older man to the ring.

            When they walked up close enough to the ring, they saw that Gayeon already got Wooyoung locked between her legs.  However, the younger boy did not plan to just surrender without a fight.  He was able to shake himself free after some struggles.  He tried to pin the petit fighter’s body down by holding down the shoulders.  However, he miscalculated and was kicked in the stomach by the Deadly Beauty.  Taking advantage of Wooyoung’s recovery time, she quickly got him under a back choke and held onto him until he tapped out.  He coughed a couple of times when she released the hold.

            She pulled back her hair and wiped the glistening sweats with the back of her hand.  She panted a little as she said to her dongsaeng, “Why are you lacking so much?  Didn’t you train?”

            “Noona, cut me some slacks.  I have school to deal with as well.” Wooyoung already rolled out of the ring.

            “Then at least get good grades like your hyung.” She was confident that he currently was only barely passing his school subjects.

            The Gayeon here was determined and confident.  She was so different from the meek girl he was used to see at the Roommate house.  Here, she exhibited a charisma that was rare even among many popular female idols that he encountered.  Ba dum, ba dum…Was that the sound of fear or something else?  He was completely enchanted.  ‘Song Gayeon, just what kind of world do you live in?’ Intrigued, he wanted to know more about her.

            “Chanyeolie oppa, want to get in the ring?” She rested her arms on the fence. “I’ll show you a few sparring techniques.”

            He smiled.

            Ba dum, ba dum…Was that the sound of fear or something else?