I was drawn out of my sleep by whispers from outside our room.

 

Rolling out of bed, I padded to the door, tying my hair up as I walked. “Who is it?” I asked sleepily, my voice rasping slightly.

 

The door creaked open and Suho stepped in, smiling broadly.  “Good morning,” he whispered, passing me a tray of breakfast. “Our EXO members were thinking of taking you two to explore the shops within our city.”

 

“Really?” I lit up at the idea. “I would love to! Jessica would agree.” I tossed a glance at the girl lying sprawled on her bed, still deep in slumber.

 

“We can meet you in an hour,” Suho suggested. After he left, I shook Jessica awake.

 

“Hmm?” she slurred, watching me hazily through half-lidded eyes.

 

“What’s this? I thought that we slept pretty early last night,” I commented, ripping away the covers from her curled-up body. Jessica mumbled something in reply, but I had already switched on the radio. “You have to get ready, we’re going shopping.”

 

Five hours later, Jessica and I had run through several different shops within the city. We laughed as we tried on dress after dress, shirt after shirt, throwing various outfits on and spinning in front of the mirror.  The members had dispersed a bit as they roamed through the outlets, commenting on the jackets and shoes on display. Jessica had bought 4 dresses, and I had bought 3 shirts with 3 dresses. Kris had bought 2 jackets, and Tao had grabbed a sweater. Luhan had bought an adorable wolf-eared toque that suited him well.

 

EXO’s fans were there too. Like vultures, they pursued after the band, scrutinizing us as we strolled down the streets. Fortunately, the managers had prepared everything in advance, stationing guards wherever we went. We were allowed a 10-foot radius of space wherever we walked. Before long, I had forgotten about the crowds altogether.

 

“Hey, this place looks cool,” Jessica noted as we stepped into a particular department store. Hats of various colors and designs lined the shelves surrounding us.

 

“I’ve never really been a hat person,” I said as I watched her place a cap on her head.

 

“Neither have I,” she admitted. “But hey, there’s a first time for everything.” Jessica tossed a cap at me, and I tried it on. I giggled as I looked at my reflection.

 

“Dear god, this doesn’t look right.” I laughed.

 

“What are you talking about? I like it.” Chanyeol declared, ambling over to us. My eyes widened as I noticed him.

 

“Oh hey guys,” Jessica grinned at Xiumin, who ambled after Chanyeol.  “Did you guys buy anything?”

 

“Sure did,” chirped Xiumin. In his hands was a tray of cappuccinos. “I’m not sure if you guys like coffee, but I bought these,” he said apologetically.

 

“Are you kidding? I love coffee!” Jessica exclaimed as we were handed our drinks.

 

“Really?” Xiumin beamed at Jessica.  “Being a barista is one of my dreams. I’ve always wanted to open my own coffee shop.”

 

“No way!” Jessica said excitedly. As she enthusiastically chatted with Xiumin, they began to stroll away, leaving me alone with Chanyeol. Before I could call out Jessica’s name, she locked eyes with me behind Xiumin’s back.

 

All of a sudden, I understood. This girl was abandoning me on purpose.

 

Taking a shaky breath, I pivoted to face Chanyeol. “Tell me, what kind of hats would suit me?” I asked, smiling coyly. Chanyeol’s face brightened as his eyes met mine.

 

“Of course! This should be fun,” he said cheerfully. He jogged to another shelf across the store, then returned with a hat. “Girls who wear these look quite flattering,” he commented mischievously as he placed the hat on my head.

 

I tore my eyes away from him to face myself in the mirror. It wasn’t long before I began to laugh uncontrollably. “Oh my god, what is this thing?” I sputtered between bouts of giggles. The hat looked like a wig, a random sprig of black hair topping the brown toque. “Would your ideal girl be wearing this?” I teased, trying not to appear too flirtatious.

 

“Obviously, or I wouldn’t fall for her,” he chortled. “Love at first sight.”

 

I felt like Chanyeol and I had become best friends by the time we gathered with the others 2 hours later. He had convinced me to buy a fedora, and I had picked a cap that I particularly liked for Chanyeol to buy for himself. My stomach ached from all the laughter I had gone through.

 

The more time I spent time with this boy, the more attracted I was to him.

 

When I saw Jessica, I ran to hug her. “How’d it go?” She whispered.

 

“Perfect,” I replied, breaking out of the hug.

 

“Hey girls, can we take a selca?” Tao asked as he joined us, a shy smile stretched across his features. Sehun grabbed Tao’s phone to snap a quick picture of us.

 

“Ah, I feel like going to the beach,” said Luhan unexpectedly.

 

“Can we watch the sunset?” Chen added. “I know it’s winter and all, but I just feel like it.”

 

“Why not?” Suho agreed as Lay appeared beside him, lugging along two plastic bags. “Lay bought food, so let’s go to Eurwangni Beach. It’s not too far from Seoul.”

 

When we got to the beach, the sun was already low over the horizon, blazing brightly. Soft shades of purple, orange and pink filled the sky. The snow that surrounded us was lined with a fiery tinge of gold.  “Oh wow,” Jessica sighed happily. It was bone-chillingly cold, but so breathtakingly beautiful.

 

While we ate, Jessica was once again immersed in conversation with Xiumin. It took a lot of effort to separate the two so that I could talk to her privately. “I see you’re becoming fast friends with Xiumin,” I mentioned once we were out of earshot.

 

“I never thought that Xiumin, of all the members, could be the most interesting,” Jessica reflected. “Did you know that he loves Spongebob? It’s my favorite show too. It’s crazy how we share so many preferences,” she added delightedly. “Xiumin’s so funny too. He might be quiet at first, but once you get to know him he’s a fascinating person.”  She paused for a minute. “But hey, you’ve got to thank me for conveniently isolating you with Chanyeol.”

 

I chuckled. “Thanks, girl.” A few minutes of silence passed before I decided to ask her a question. “In the morning...you said something about taking a walk last night.”

 

Jessica gasped. “Oh my god. I didn’t tell you!” She facepalmed herself. “I was so sleepy that I totally forgot.”

 

“Tell me what?”  I was curious.

 

“Last night, I did take a nighttime walk…” she paused dramatically. “...with Kyungsoo!”

 

I choked on the hot cocoa I had been sipping. “No way!” I squealed. “Details. Now.”

 

“Well, at first it was pretty awkward,” Jessica began. “He literally said nothing during the first few minutes or so, and I was obsessing over what to talk about. He’s way too shy, I swear.” I nodded, imagining the scenario in my head. “I decided to take the initiative and asked him about his entry into EXO, then from there worked the conversation to talk about his personal life. Turns out his favorite color’s black...which I never knew. Later, he asked a few questions about me, but didn’t talk very much overall during our walk. He’s so quiet.” Jessica let out a small sigh.

 

“Aw, don’t worry. You always told me that D.O.’s known for being a reserved person, right? Another walk or two should open him up a bit more.”

 

“Well,  I guess I’m not exactly worried,” Jessica replied after stealing a sip of my drink. “Maybe he’ll talk more as the days pass.” I stopped walking as she turned to face the sea. The snow melted as it merged with the gentle waves surrounding us, and I breathed in the strong salty smell of the sea as I listened to her. “When he does speak, he sounds so mature. The entire experience, simply walking beside him--even if in silence--was…” She trailed off, struggling to find a word.

 

I smiled. “Well, you do realize that millions of fans would die to be in your shoes. Literally.”

 

Jessica nodded.  “I’m grateful.”

 

“Hey! Ladies!”

 

I turned to find Kris jogging towards us ever so handsomely. “Kris?” Jessica and I chorused.

 

“The sun’s going to set soon,” he panted. “Let’s watch it together.”

 

A few minutes later, Jessica and I perched on boulders scattered amongst the other members, facing the ocean. The sky was a burning orange, and the sun pierced our eyes. It disappeared over the horizon in an interesting fashion: slowly, then all at once.

 

It was like falling asleep. Slowly...then all at once.

 

Falling in love. Slowly…

 

I smiled.

 

Once the sun’s glow faded away from the horizon, Chanyeol hopped off his boulder. “Let’s go home, guys!” he called out brightly.  I carefully leapt off, taking care to land perfectly on the ground.

 

Jessica made to follow suit, until her foot slipped.

 

It happened so fast that I could only stare from where I stood. Jessica emitted a small shriek as she fell to the ground, and I clapped my hand over my mouth. The boulder wasn’t very steep, but we were surrounded by solid rocks that were capable of delivering a concussion if hit the wrong way.

 

Suddenly, one of the members caught her. “Oh,” Jessica gasped, wild-eyed. “Xiumin!”

 

Xiumin grinned as he let her go. “Be careful,” he replied.

 

“Wow, Xiumin,” Baekhyun called out. “That was beautiful!” The members applauded, cheering. I laughed as I clapped along. Xiumin turned away, suddenly shy.

 

Once I got to my bed, it was well past 12a.m. I shut my eyes, trying desperately to fall asleep.

 

“That one looks nice on you.”

 

“Really?”

 

“To be honest...all of these hats look pretty good on you. You should wear them more often.”

 

My eyes flew open as Chanyeol’s grin swam into my mind.

 

Suddenly, I jumped out of bed and ran to my bag. Pulling out the fedora I had bought, I turned to the mirror and put it on my head. Slowly but surely, I smiled at my reflection.

 

I had never felt prettier.