Why are you smiling like that?” Ji Yong asked her and the others all turned to look at her curiously.

She shrugged and smiled even wider. “Oh, I just have a feeling that I’m going to have lots of fun today,” she explained.

“That’s because I’m here,” he grinned.

“Keep on dreaming,” both she and TOP said in unison and they looked at each other, laughing.

“Jinx, you owe me a soda,” he said.

Lia was surprised. “No way! You guys do that here too?” she exclaimed. “That’s cool.”

“All right, all right,” TOP said, gathering all the empty plates. “You go ahead and do what you want. I’ll clean up here. I think maybe the boys should change.”

Lia jumped off her seat. “I’ll help,” she offered.

“No, no, don’t,” he said briskly, shooing her away. “You’re the guest. You don’t have to help out.”

“Are you sure? I really don’t mind.”

Seung Ri, Tae Yang and Dae Sung raised their eyebrows. From where they could see Lia’s face expression, they could tell that she really didn’t mind helping. They smiled. It really was a no wonder why Ji Yong likes her. She’s so polite and so sweet.

TOP nodded. “Let the boys take you on a tour around the place,” he suggested.

“Okay,” she relented.

“Come on,” Seung Ri said, gesturing for her to follow. “We’ll give you a tour.”

“All right.”

Ji Yong couldn’t help but think that her smile was cute. And when she laughed, it was like the soft tinkling chime of a bell. Everything about her was cute.

TOP watched as the four of his friends took her on a tour. He smiled in amusement. He had to admit it was funny seeing a small, pixie-like girl in the midst of four tall boys.

But then he frowned thoughtfully as he turned to the dirty dishes. Hmmm . . .

Is Seunghyun Oppa usually that quiet?” Lia asked as the four boys led her around.

“He’s quiet around people he’s not really familiar with,” Tae Yang said, nodding. “But once you get to know him, there is nothing quiet about him.”

“He’s really funny,” Dae Sung said. “And he is helpful.”

“The only thing that really annoys him is Dae Sung Hyung,” Seung Ri added and got shoved to one side against the wall. “You can’t deny that!”

“But, overall, he’s a good guy,” Ji Yong concluded. “It will take time but eventually he will open to you. You’ll see.” He stopped at a door. “This is Yong Bae and Dae Sung’s room.” He pointed to the door opposite. “That is the guest room.”

The five of them walked back out to the living room. There was a door on their right side, which Dae Sung told her it was TOP and Seung Ri’s bedroom. At the other end of the living room, it was Ji Yong’s room.

“Why does he get to sleep by himself?”

“It’s because I’m the leader,” Ji Yong said. He saw the look on her face and before she could say something, he quickly said, “Don’t say anything negative. It’s true.”

“Pfft,” was all she said.

“Pfft back.” He looked at the wall clock. “Ah. I’m gonna change.”

“Same,” the other three said.

“I’ll just hang out with TOP by the kitchen then,” Lia said and the boys nodded. She walked to TOP as they went in their rooms to change. “Hey, need a hand?”

He looked up. “Hey. It’s okay. I’m almost done. They finished giving you a tour already?”

She nodded. “Yeah.” She looked around. “It’s small, but it seems like a nice place to live in,” she remarked.

He nodded. “Yeah, that is one thing I like about this place.” He leaned over the table and smiled at her. “So, tell me more about yourself. Where were you born and everything?”

Lia hesitated a bit. She didn’t really want to tell him her sob story. So she just waved her hand nonchalantly and said, “Oh, I lived in Melbourne all my life. My parents migrated there from America when they got married so they lived there before I was born.” That wasn’t exactly a lie. She just didn’t tell him she was adopted.

“Can I ask a personal question?”

The others came back, all changed and ready to go. They walked up to where the two of them were.

“Er, sure. Shoot.”

“Well, I remember your friend saying your surname is Douglas, right?” When she nodded, TOP went on, “Don’t get offended but how come you have an American surname but everything about your looks is Asian?”

Ji Yong frowned at him. “That is a sensitive question to ask, hyung,” he said.

Lia bit her lip, not sure how to take that remark. Yes, she knew her skin wasn’t white; it was quite tanned. Yes, she has brown, almond-shaped eyes and black hair like most Asians and not blue or green eyes with blond or red hair. Yes, she was short and Asians, sadly, tend to be short. She was adopted, after all, by American parents who live in Australia.

She had to remind herself that TOP doesn’t know about that.

“I’m just curious. You don’t have to answer it if you don’t want to,” he said hastily, taking her silence as a bad sign.

She shook her head. “Nah, it’s okay,” she said softly. She looked at them. “I’m, well, adopted.”

“Oh.” The members of Big Bang didn’t know how to response to that.

“Anyway, so where are we going?” she went on, breaking the awkward silence.

“We’re going to our gym,” Seung Ri said, getting up. The others followed. “We’re taking two cars there.”

Tae Yang nodded. “Dae Sung will drive his car, with us inside. Ji Yong will take the other. Lia, would it be all right to follow him?”

She nodded. “Yeah, sure.”

“Everybody else okay with it?”

There was a murmur of agreement as everyone shuffled to get their stuff. Lia went to grab her that was left on the kitchen counter. She checked her phone.

“Mianhae. I’m sorry, Lia,” TOP muttered in a low voice behind her and she jumped up, alarmed. “I shouldn’t have asked that question. I was stupid.”

She whirled around, surprised. “Hey, it’s okay,” she told him. She could tell that he was really sorry. “It was bound to come out. If not you, then someone else would have asked. You got the awkwardness of it over early. It’s cool. I’m fine with it.”

He nodded. “I hope I didn’t offend you,” he added.

She shook her head. “Don’t worry.” She smiled warmly at him to let him know that it was fine.

He smiled back and walked away just as Ji Yong came up to her but not without shooting his hyung a dark look. Lia winced. He turned back to her and smiled brightly. “You ready to go?” he said, jiggling the car keys in his hand.

She smiled. “Yeap.” She followed them out of the door, giving them a little wave as they went off separately. “Hey, don’t hold a grudge against Seunghyun Oppa for what he asked me just now,” she said to him once the both of them got in the car. “He was just curious, that’s all. I don’t blame him.”

“But —”

“And also, I’m pretty sure the question would have come out eventually,” she went on, cutting him off by speaking louder than him. “If not from him, it would have come from someone else.”

He sighed, giving up, as he drove out of the compound. They sat in silence as he drove to Big Bang’s private gym, with Dae Sung driving behind them.

“I’m sorry.”

Ji Yong turned to Lia. “Why are you saying sorry? What did you do?” he asked, confused.

She shrugged. “For Seunghyun Oppa’s behavior,” she replied. “For talking back to you, who’s older than me, for —”

“I should be the one saying sorry,” he cut her off. “I overreacted.”

They lapsed into silence again, not knowing what to say to lighten the mood.

After a few minutes, Lia, unable to stand the silence, turned the radio and her eyes lit up when an English song was playing. She began to sing along to the song, grooving to the beat.

“You have a good voice,” he noted. “What song is this?”

“My Life Would without You by Kelly Clarkson,” she replied, “only this is the Glee cast version of the song.”

Ji Yong was surprised that the chorus was quite high. But Lia managed to hit the notes. She looked as though she was enjoying the song. He smiled.

They stopped at a traffic light when the bridge came. A car pulled to a stop on their left and Ji Yong saw it was Dae Sung’s car. They looked over to them and he had to laugh when he saw their eyes popped out as they saw Lia bobbing her head to the beat.

The lights turned green and he stepped on the accelerator.

“Why don’t you take singing as a career?” Ji Yong asked her. “I mean, you’ve got a good voice.”

She shook her head. “I can’t. I’m not a very good singer. And that song I just sang? Sure, I can hit the notes, but my voice isn’t powerful.”

“Maybe if you take vocal lessons —”

“Nah, I don’t see myself as a singer,” she said firmly. “Thanks for the compliment, though. It was sweet of you but I think I’ll stick to what I’m good at: counseling.”

He was surprised. “You want to be a counselor when you grow up? That’s an interesting career.”

“Teen psychologist,” she specified. “If not, an author.”

“You like to write?”

She nodded. “I love to write. It gives me the freedom to express my feelings into words, you know? I write stories, poetry, whatever that comes to mind. Writing gives me a chance to say something of what I feel.”

He nodded. He does know. “It’s like how I feel with singing,” he said. “When I sing, I let loose. I let my emotions out and just feel it.”

“Exactly.”

“You’re really passionate about this, aren’t you?”

“It’s my life,” she said quietly.

Ji Yong knew that there was something more than that but he didn’t push her. “So, you know how to play ping pong?”