Chapter Seven

Weaving through the halls, Yunji tried her best not to drop the stack of papers in her arms. It would have been an understatement to say that she was disappointed at the line of work at the moment. Instead of discussing scripts and breaking down scenes, she was fetching coffee and delivering different files – she was basically his errand girl. She had never expected that he would make her do these kinds of things; she was frustrated.

Pushing the door open, she stumbled into his office, dropping the papers on his desk. A big waft of air came from them, blowing Director GD's hair back. He grinned as he flipped through them, happy with the work she'd done. "Good job, I was worried you might not be able to carry them all but you seem to have managed well enough," he smiled at her.

She nodded, still feeling bitter at the lack of interesting jobs. Someone else may have asked him about it but she was too shy. She had barely been able to tell him that she was going to take the opportunity, let alone complain about what she had to do after taking it. Her friends had talked her into it and she was going to do it – even if it only involved errand jobs.

Focusing on not stuttering, Yunji mumbled, "Anything else?" It sounded forced – mostly because it was – GD seemed to notice this, slightly narrowing his eyes. So far, it had seemed like not only was it his mission to send Yunji on dull tasks but also to bring her out of her shell as much as possible. While she appreciated his concern, she liked her shell; it kept her safe from the people around her who could hurt her.

"Nope," he said, popping the 'p' and spinning around in his chair. He stopped suddenly, grabbing the desk and dragging his chair closer. "Actually," he looked up at her, "I was wondering if you knew any none MAP students who might have enough talent to join the showcase."

"Wha-what do you me-mean?" she asked.

"The audition is in less than two weeks and people are already prepping but I know from experience that there are some students with incredible talent who won't audition," he told her.

When she didn't respond and just chose to look at him questioningly, he continued explaining, "I can't just let them join the production on my sole recommendation. They have to audition like everyone else which means they need to want to audition."

"I…how?" she still had no idea what this had to do with her.

"You're probably wondering why I'm telling you this. It's because I want you to do some scouting," he said, pulling his chair back to do some rummaging. He pulled a notebook from his drawer, handing it to her. She took it, looking at the front. It was just a normal spiral notebook with a black cover. Opening it, she saw that each page had a student's name and their information.

"All those students are rumoured to have amazing talents but they aren't MAP students so the likeliness that they'll audition is low – too low. I want you to find out if they plan on auditioning and if they aren't convince them to," he instructed them.

She frowned at the notebook. How on earth did he expect her to do this? She could barely speak to him, let alone convince random people to audition for something that they may not have wanted to. "I… maybe th-this isn't the be-best job for m-me," she stuttered.

Director GD returned her frown with one of his own. It wasn't an angry frown – verging more on the side of disappointment. Somehow it made her feel like she was being scolded by her father rather than telling her professor no. "Look," he sighed, "I know you're shy but you're also a very talented director. I can't see you going too far when you're unable to even talk to the people you work with."

He's right, she thought as she looked to the ground.

She must have looked troubled because he added, "I'm not saying this to upset you, Yunji. A big reason why I think this opportunity will help you is because it'll put you outside of your comfort zone." Seeing that his response did nothing to make her feel better, he continued, "You don't necessarily need to talk to them to get them to audition, you're resourceful. I'm sure you'll find some way. When you're guaranteed that person is going to audition, tick them off. Any that don't agree, just leave them blank and return the notebook to me two days before the audition. I'll handle the leftovers."

Looking back up at him, her eyes met his for a brief moment. He looked hopeful, smiling kindly at her. Yunji didn't respond for a while, still considering whether it was too late to quit. After a long time of silence, she sighed and nodded, putting the book away in her bag. Director GD grinned in triumph, pleased that he'd been able to convince her.

"Great," he exclaimed, "If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask."

She nodded before bowing and making her way to the door. Right when she got there, she heard him shout, "Oh! And don't forget the meeting today with the rest of the showcase crew; I want you to be there!"

"Yes, sir," she mumbled, letting herself out.  The hallway was mostly empty – most people in different classes. Readjusting the strap of her bag, she began walking down the hallway, trying to recall whether she had any plans of some sort. She had two more lessons in the day but those weren't until after noon. Maybe I should look at the notebook he gave me, she thought.

Changing direction to go to the grassy area of the campus, she made her way there quickly and found an empty spot on the grass to sit on. It was considerably lacking in students; it was still early for everyone to be out. She liked the space though.

Carefully, she pulled out the notebook, laying it on her lap. Flipping it open, the first page had a student she'd never heard of. His name was Choi Junhong (though in GD's notes on him, he had scrawled: I think that the perfect stage name for him would be 'Zelo'. He looks like a 'Zelo'. Yunji had no idea what a 'Zelo' looked like so she chose to ignore it) and he was an eighteen year old, General Study student. It said on the notes that he was a talented dancer and rapper but he was leaning towards the science side of the degree spectrum. The notes taken about him were detailed; Yunji wondered how Director GD had acquired them. All the possibilities involved him creeping so she dismissed them from her mind.

She was busy reading when she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. Turning around, she was surprised to see Jin from the party. He was much cuter than she had remembered. Nervously, she smiled at him – or at least attempted, it may have come out as a grimace.

 "These are for you," he said, handing her a bouquet of flowers, "They're from a friend." With that, he smiled, leaving.

Confused, she watched him go before redirecting her attention to the flowers in her hands. It was a bouquet of pink roses and lilies; they were beautiful. Looking closer, she noticed there was a note attached. With hope that it would explain what had just happened, she pulled it out, opening it:

I'm sorry about Thursday night; I shouldn't have played that song. While my feelings for you seem to demand to manifest themselves into songs, I'm going to do my best not to play another one to you (unless you ask) and instead allow them to come out in different ways, like this for example. I hope you like the flowers,

Namjoon

Yunji looked around but didn't see anyone. Placing the note back into the flowers gently, she found herself smiling at them.

Head ducked down, Jang Mi continued writing notes for the project she had to do. It was for biology and she was really beginning to stress out over it. While General Studies gave her time to think over what she wanted to do and try everything – it meant that she was taking lots of different unrelated classes and that could get rather confusing. Sighing, she laid her forehead against the notebook. The coffee shop was supposed to help her concentrate but it did nothing.

"Coffee?" a voice asked, causing her to lift her head up and stare at them with an eyebrow raised.

Jungkook stood over her, a small smirk on his face as he watched her expectantly. Jang Mi narrowed her eyes suspiciously, shrugging casually but secretly wanting to jump at the offer. "Sure, whatever, if you must… I'll take a Caramel Macchiato." It must have been obvious that she wanted some because his smirk grew and he snorted, going to the shop counter.

She watched him go, over the moon at the fact she was getting a free coffee. She was feeling completely drained of energy but she didn't want to buy another coffee as she'd already spent a considerable amount of money on coffee that day. Looking back to her work, she labelled a few items of worth, waiting for the arrival of the coffee.

When Jungkook got back, he set two drinks on the table, pulling a chair out and taking a seat. Jang Mi flashed him a grateful smile, "Thanks." Then, she redirected her attention back to her work, absentmindedly grabbing her drink and sipping it. She didn't speak and it took Jungkook a while to say something to break the silence.

"So, what're you doing?" he asked.

She shrugged, not looking up as she replied, "Biology."

"Is it hard?"

This made her look up but only briefly to give him an unimpressed look.

"I'll take that as a yes," he joked, causing Jang Mi to feel guilty. He was just trying to talk to her and he'd bought her coffee and she wouldn't even hold a conversation with him.

"Sorry, I'm just super stressed," she sighed, putting her pen down and finally meeting his eyes.

He nodded, smiling sympathetically at her, "No, it's fine. I understand, except for me, it's English that I'm stressed about."

She raised her eyebrows, "Really?"

He shrugged, "I got four out of one hundred on the last test."

"Ouch," Jang Mi chucked slightly, "That's pretty bad."

He nodded, smiling at her as she sipped her coffee. A comfortable silence fell over them as she continued doing her work. No one said anything for a while as Jungkook scrolled through his phone. Even with the lack of conversation, Jang Mi didn't feel uncomfortable. It didn't feel as if either of them needed to say anything to stop things for getting awkward; they felt secure with one another.

"Hey, what are you doing on Friday?" Jungkook suddenly asked.

Jang Mi's hand paused from writing as she lifted her head. Looking at him warily, she asked, "Why?"

Laughing slightly, Jungkook grinned at her, "Don't look so worried, I was just wondering if you maybe wanna come to my football match?"

Raising her eyebrows, she leaned forward, forearms resting on the table. She'd been worried that he was asking her on a date; she wanted to be just friends with him but an invitation to his football match she could handle. She'd heard all over campus that he was an amazing sportsman but she had yet to see it for herself.

"Sure," she smiled, "What time?"

"Around six," he said, "I'll text you the details?"

Jang Mi nodded, watching as he rose from his seat. He grinned at her, "See you there."

She raised her hand to wave at him as he exited the café. Looking down at her work, she realised she was smiling; she did her best to shake it off and be serious. Her biology work needed to be done so she needed to focus. Taking the last gulp of her coffee, she tightened her ponytail and picked up her pen. It was time to get down to business.

After finishing his warm up, Hoseok flipped through his iPod, not quite sure yet what he wanted to dance to. He didn't have any performances or exams coming up so he was free to just dance. He loved times like this – times when he could just lose himself in the music. It wasn't often that he didn't have some promise to uphold, especially with his dance professor, Taeyang. He always had some kind of competition or performance for Hoseok to do.

Jumping up, Hoseok had finally decided on a song. Choosing one of the MAP department's professor's songs, he put his iPod on the dock. He pressed play, and then went to the middle of the room, deciding to just go with it. The first lines of GD's Niliria sounded throughout the room, giving Hoseok his queue to dance.

He danced all through the song, not stopping even when the next song started playing. Sweat was trickling down his forehead but he didn't stop to wipe it. The song slowed down giving Hoseok the opportunity to do and turn and jump. It was a jump he'd done and landed several times but today it seemed he had been dancing too long as he missed his landing and instead ended up on his knees.

Groaning, he pushed himself to a stand but his right knee gave way, causing his to fall back down again. He cradled his knee as it burned with pain. From what he could see, it was swelling and as fast as the pain started, it soon faded away. Breathing in deeply, Hoseok slowly raised himself from the floor, careful not to put too much weight on it. His knee felt slightly stiff but the pain was vanishing.

Walking over to the iPod, he stopped the music and began packing to leave. He would stretch again when all his stuff was packed. Right as he was about to finish stretching, he heard the door open and turned to see his professor, Taeyang.

"Hoseok, I thought I might find you here," Taeyang smiled at him.

Hoseok eyed him warily, sure that he was going to ask something. "Well, I'm here. What's up?"

"I was wondering if you might maybe want to do the showcase?"

"Thanks but I'm not really interested in that," Hoseok responded politely. Ignoring the frown on Taeyang's face, he grabbed his bag, hoisting it on his shoulder. As he began making his way out, he couldn't help but to limp a little bit.

"Everything okay with your leg?" Taeyang asked, concern in his voice. Even though he pushed Hoseok to do all these things, he did care for him a great deal and all he really wanted was for him to succeed. Unlike Hoseok, he'd been thinking of what the boy would do after graduating and knew that making a name for him would really help him.

Hoseok paused, turning around and smiling, "I just pulled something, it's no big deal."

"Well you should make sure to put some ice on that and slow down a bit on dance practice. You wouldn't want that to get any worse," Taeyang frowned.

He nodded, "Of course."

"Oh and J-Hope," Taeyang stopped him from leaving again, "What if I said that instead of doing the final exam this year, I could just give you a grade for the showcase?"

Hesitating Hoseok struggled to form a response. He hated the final exam so maybe this would be a better option. Sighing, he ended up agreeing, "Fine."

Taeyang seemed excited with his response, putting his arm around Hoseok's shoulder, a grin on his face. "Great, now let's talk show business."

Cautiously Yura peeked over the corner. There were students all milling around, going about their day to day lives and from what she could see, the close was clear. Taking a final glance around, she pushed herself off the wall and began speed walking down the pathway. No one paid much attention to her which was to her advantage. She had decided to hide out at the library and she could see her salvation when she heard a voice call, "Yura!"

She cringed, realising the library was no longer a safe zone. She made a sharp turn, trying to remember where the nearest toilet was; she knew that she couldn't be followed into there. Accidentally bumping into a few people on the way, Yura didn't slow her pace at all and looking back, she saw that neither did he.

Breathing a sigh of relief when she got to them, she ran inside, trying to catch her breath. Ever since the party last week, it seemed she had a new shadow and she most definitely didn't like it. Yura looked at the mirror, deciding that while she was in there, she might as well fix her makeup. Once done, she hoisted herself up and took a seat on the counter. People came in and out, looking at her weirdly. She responded to those stares with a harsh glare, effectively scaring them off. After a good ten minutes of hiding and scaring people away, she decided that he had probably left by then.

Poking her head out of the door, she looked around. The close seemed clear, so she stepped out, waiting for someone to call her name. She found herself grinning at the silence, readjusting her bag on her shoulder and heading to her next lesson.

However, just as she took a step, someone from behind called, "Yura!"

Before she could think of running, she felt a hand on her shoulder and tightly closing her eyes, she turned around. Taehyung stood in front of her, smiling at her innocently. He'd been following her ever since the party and at first she'd been mean to him because she was almost one hundred percent sure that he ate her fruit salad but now she was spiteful because he was aggravating her.

"What?" she spat.

"It's lunchtime and I wasn't sure if you ate or not so I got you something," he said really quickly before reaching into his bag and pulling out a lunchbox. "I didn't know what you liked so I just got you what I liked."

Yura frowned, releasing a sigh. She didn't want to take the lunchbox but she knew that if she didn't, he would just follow her until she took it. Narrowing her eyes, she snatched the box out of his hands, swiftly turning around and walking away.

"Do you wanna eat it together?" she heard him call.

"No!" she shouted back, resisting the urge to rub her temples. When was Kim Taehyung going to get the hint and just leave her alone? 

Author's Note: Here's the seventh chapter and I'm currently on track to actually updating on the right days even with my exams. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the chapter and if you did, you should subscribe and as always, comments are much appreciated ^.^ Monday will be the next update!